The FAA is seeking a $165,000 penalty against Alaska Airlines after alleging the carrier allowed intoxicated passengers to board multiple flights between 2024 and 2025.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed a $165,000 fine against Alaska Airlines for allowing passengers who appeared to be intoxicated on board their flights.
The FAA says the alleged incidents occurred on 11 flights between February 2024 and February 2025. Federal regulations prohibit commercial airlines from allowing passengers to board if they appear to be intoxicated. Regulations also prohibit passengers from drinking alcohol onboard that hasn’t been served to them by a flight attendant, and require crews to discontinue alcohol service to passengers who begin to appear intoxicated.
Airlines train ground personnel and cabin crews to briefly scan boarding passengers for signs they have been drinking or may be intoxicated. The same workgroups are also trained on diplomatically approaching passengers they suspect may be intoxicated to gather facts about the situation to ensure they don’t deny boarding to passengers who have taken medication or have disabilities whose characteristics can be mistaken for intoxication.
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Alaska Airlines told the news agency Reuters that they participated fully in the FAA audit of its policies and said it takes the issue seriously.
“Since the FAA shared these concerns with us over a year ago, we made meaningful changes to ensure compliance with the FAA’s expectations–including enhanced training for all flight attendants and customer service agents,” Alaska said in a statement Tuesday. “We respect the results of the FAA’s audit and are confident in the changes that have been in place for the last year to ensure our shared standards are being met.”
The FAA typically proposes a fine following an investigation with the cooperation of the airline. The agency typically proposes fines as punitive actions if they believe the violations are the result of insufficient oversight on the part of the carrier. Proposed fines are not final rulings; airlines can challenge the FAA’s proposal in court, or they can choose to pay the fine.
Alaska gave no comment on how they plan to respond to the proposed fine.
Commercial airlines are one of the few places where the federal government directly regulates the service of alcoholic beverages. State and local governments regulate the sale of alcoholic beverages, so rules vary by airport. It’s worth noting that virtually all states prohibit license holders from selling alcoholic beverages to patrons who appear to be intoxicated.
Intoxicated passengers pose significant safety risks on board commercial airliners. They’re typically unable to follow crew safety instructions, have been known to be combative or non-cooperative with crewmember instructions, and can endanger passengers or crew if their behavior becomes aggressive or erratic while in-flight. In the most difficult situations, intoxicated passengers have posed an imminent enough threat that flights have been diverted, at significant delay and expense.
Intoxicated passengers aren’t only a problem at U.S. airports. Last year, the head of Irish low-cost airline Ryanair proposed that airports do their part to limit alcohol service to passengers, particularly on early morning flights. In 2021, the FAA asked airports to prohibit the sale of “to-go” alcoholic beverages to passengers. Many jurisdictions had relaxed rules on alcohol sales during the pandemic when dine-in options were limited or prohibited.
The FAA’s release did not indicate which flights or from which cities the audit alleged passengers appearing to be intoxicated had boarded Alaska flights, and did not reveal how the agency reached its conclusions. Airlines typically document actions taken when they suspect a passenger to be intoxicated, including whether or not the passenger is ultimately allowed to travel on their original flight or a later flight.
Alaska Airlines is a subsidiary of Seattle-based Alaska Air Group, which also includes Hawaiian Airlines and regional carrier Horizon Air. The three airlines operate around 1,500 daily flights.