I refer to a news item, “Serving alcohol not the problem, says Nur Jazlan” when commenting on serving alcohol during flights.
I am not sure whether the passenger who caused trouble on flight MH128 recently was drunk or mentally unstable. But the issue now seems to have gravitated towards “serving alcohol during flights”.
Personally I have no idea whether serving alcohol is an important “marketing tool” for any airline.
But for safety and orderliness, I would prefer that airlines stopped serving alcohol during flights.
At one time smoking was allowed during flights but now all airlines have banned it without causing much of an issue. Presently, I don’t think anyone would want to travel in the same cabin with others who smoke away during the flight.
I think it is time to do the same with alcohol.
Hundreds of people are confined in a small space during flights and it is not a good idea to have some people come “under the influence” in such situations.
Of course some would argue that most are able to control the amount of alcohol they consume. But the cabin crew generally have no means in which to know whether passengers are able to control themselves or not. They have no idea how some passengers react after a few drinks.
It can be quite intimidating when some passengers become rowdy even though they are not violent. They could be disruptive to other passengers sitting nearby with their loud talking and laughing.
It is true the cabin crew have the right to refrain from serving more alcohol when the first signs of drunkenness emerge. But by then it is usually too late. It is always arguable how “drunk” is drunk.
For the good of everyone, I think it is best to stop serving alcohol completely – less arguments, less disorderliness and better safety.
By the way, I think it is inappropriate for Nur Jazlan Mohamed to say, “Maybe it’s the cheap fares that MAS offers that are attracting a different crowd … attracting such characters.”
I think the deputy minister has just insulted many less affluent passengers. Getting drunk or suffering from mental illness has nothing much to with “cheap fares”, neither has the economic status of a traveller anything to do with “such characters”.
T K Chua is an FMT reader.
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