Russian Police Wants Alcohol Banned on Planes
Russian police is determined to seek a complete ban on drinking on board of Russian aircrafts, an official said Thursday. The measure is to make flights safer and protect passengers from recurrent drunken brawls on planes. The ban, however, may not prove to be as effective as deemed since some Russians are smart enough to get drunk before boarding.
Vyacheslav Zakharenkov, head of the Interior Ministry’s Transport Police, linked the initiative to recent “drunken brawls which were causing flight delays”. In the latest “drinking incident”, a Transaero flight was delayed for 10 hours after three passengers started a scuffle.
The Transport Police spokesman said Thursday police would ask the Transport Ministry to amend current air safety regulations. A complete ban on onboard drinking may become a reality this year.
The EU introduced prohibition on all flights from Europe last September banning to unpack duty-free drinks onboard. Passengers of Russian airlines, however, felt free to drink as it is the air lines’ rules that are superior onboard.
Drinking is prohibited on all major Russian airlines. However, a lot of passengers board their planes intoxicated. The problem is not in flight attendants offering drinks, Sergey Bykhal, spokesman for Transaero, said in an interview with Kommersant. “If the police creates an effective system to control people taking alcohol onboard, we will be more than happy,” Mr. Bykhal said. Andrey Martirosov, director general of the UTAir airline, underscores that the battle with onboard drinking ought to be launched on charter flights where recent drinking drawls occured.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Feb. 16, 2007
|
