Korean Job Discussion Forums

[catman]

I recently had the misfortune of sitting next to a drunk on a short 2 hours flight. The man was not abusive or anything but got to be pretty damn annoying. Rather loud. Went to that bathroom about 7 times (he had the window seat). Made an inappropriate comment about the stewardess' breast size which she did her best to ignore. I was surprised that he was even let on the plane considering the state he was in.

So why are alcohol sales allowed in airports or on airplanes? Are the profits really that high?

I've read numerous stories about flights having to be diverted to deal with a drunk passenger.

[wishfullthinkng]

sorry to break it to you, but it's the person at fault, not the booze. the alcohol only aids to speed up a persons awfulness and makes it more pronounced.

and yes the profits really are that high.

i rather enjoy relaxing in a lounge and having a few free whiskeys or cognacs before a flight and just falling into a comfortable alcohol-induced lull once on board.

if you would like no alcohol head over to brunei or pretty much any other islamic country and have at it.

edit: morning-time typos

[Beeyee]

No, I need the in-flight beer to help me sleep.

[lemak]

Likely helps settle the nerves of many of the "fear of flying" crowd too.

Probably find vastly more freak outs on flights if people can't self medicate.

I'm sure the occasional drunk annoys the hell out of the air crew, but the flip side is a couple of drinks tend to knock out most passengers hence ending the endless requests for more food, back rubs, to know the time etc.

You can always fly Royal Brunei, Pakistan Airlines, Biman Bangladesh or Saudia if you don't want to be surrounded by alcohol. Interestingly in my experience you'll find the jackass passenger factor to be just the same, or even higher on those than the regular airlines.

[young_clinton]

Yes, if you want to drink, do it at home or in a bar. People shouldn't have to deal with drunks, and people who can't control thier drinking don't need to be arrested at the airports.

[Captain Corea]

I've never understood the need for it either. Must be a hold over front the days of "the gentleman's club in the sky".

They got rid of smoking on flights, I'd be fine with this getting dropped as well.

[littlelisa]

What if it wasn't banned, but anyone visibly intoxicated would be unable to board a plane until they were more sober? A couple of drinks should be okay, but completely drunk should not. I guess there's a bit of a grayscale that way, but it's probably most fair.

I don't drink at all, but I have no problems with those who do as long as it doesn't negatively affect others.

[Yaya]

I suppose the airliners have thought of banning alcohol on flights just like they did with smoking, but decided the pros outweighed the cons (but I don't know this for sure).

I personally think alcohol should be banned on flights given the danger that a passenger can get weird and disruptive. Yes, not all people do that but one passenger can cause a flight to get diverted, esp. if a drunk starts talking out of his or her ass about having a bomb or being a terrorist.

[Squire]

You have a bad experience with one person so now everyone should be forced to abstain from drinking on a potentially long journey. I hate this 'liberal' way of thinking

[Yaya]

[Squire]

[Yaya]

Like throwing the irate passenger out of the plane mid-flight?

[JustinC]

Thousands fly home from booze-filled vacations, business meetings, family feuds/get togethers every day. Flying back from somewhere usually means it has been a special occasion and on special occasions people often choose to drink more than they usually would.

It's not like getting the 4:53 back from Paddington on a wet Thursday afternoon - you don't expect your fellow train passenger to be half-cut. Also you wouldn't expect people to be rolling on the floor on the subway at 9am, but in any airport (apart from the despicable Riyadh and a few others) if you spot someone having a beer at 9am it's not a huge surprise.

But the 'nerves' excuse is usually pure hokum, they are boozers finding a super excuse to less furtively drink at a time when they know they shouldn't.

[fosterman]

booze is free on flights

[wishfullthinkng]

only on national carriers and only for long haul flights. domestic american carriers charge you as do budget airlines (if they even have any on board). plus you only get the standard fare. if you want the nicer whiskeys and champagne, etc., you have to sit in business and up.