First Class passengers on domestic US flights already know all too well that the chance of getting a pre-departure beverage can be a lottery, even if it’s meant to be a standard part of the service, but a new clampdown by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) could prove to be the final nail in the coffin.
The reason is that there is likely to be an increased onus on flight attendants monitoring passenger behavior as they are boarding the aircraft to make sure they are not intoxicated… and if they are, have them quickly removed.
This follows a rare decision by the FAA to fine Alaska Airlines $165,000 for allowing intoxicated passengers on board its flights, using a rule that has been in place for many years but is hardly ever monitored.
The FAA launched an audit into Alaska Airlines and proposed a civil penalty based on 11 incidents that occurred on flights between February 2024 and February 2025, making each infraction worth around $15,000 in penalties.
Flight attendants are already charged with monitoring passenger behavior at the boarding door, but with U.S. carriers typically staffing many domestic flights with just three crew members, it leaves just one flight attendant at the front of the plane.
But that lonely crew member has a whole host of other duties to be getting on with, from checking the First Class catering to delivering pre-departure beverages.
Realistically, the ability of even the best flight attendant to monitor the behavior of every passenger boarding the plane, while also serving pre-departure beverages, is a stretch.
And in recent years, the moment a passenger boards the plane could be the first and only time that any airline staff member actually interacts with them, making it even more important that the crew member is available to greet and observe every customer.
The rise of self-check-in machines and automated boarding gates means that passengers can pass through the entire airport without seeing an airline employee until they board the plane.
As it stands, though, many passengers are boarding the plane and still not seeing a crew member, allowing them to take their seats without anyone ever observing their behavior.
All too often, the first time that flight attendants are aware of something amiss is when the plane is already in the air, and options to deal with unruly passengers are few and far between.
Under FAA regulation 14 CFR § 121.575(c), airlines are prohibited from allowing “any person to board any of its aircraft if that person appears to be intoxicated,” although this obviously requires someone to notice this in the first place.
There’s always been a tension amongst flight attendants to complete pre-departure beverage service, given all of their other responsibilities during boarding, but this new FAA crackdown could prove to be the authoritative reason that crew members skip this service.
Whether the FAA decides to start auditing other carriers for similar violations could be the deciding factor in whether airlines decide something has to officially change. What isn’t going to change, though, is staffing levels.
