The pre-flight pint is a tried and tested holiday tradition.
No matter what time of year, nor what time of day, if you’re of the drinking persuasion and find yourself with a half hour to spare before a flight, you grab a pint.
Or two.
Maybe five.
Perhaps even a cocktail. A mojito if you’re flying somewhere warm. Really get into all the holiday spirit early and what not.
But it appears a few bad apples have spoiled it for the majority, at least according to new UK government travel guidelines.
According to the Evening Standard, airport bars will be stopped from serving customers who want to drink ‘excessively’, thanks to new rulings.
New rules backed by Britain’s Department for Transport would also put a stop on people having a pre-drink session with any alcohol bought in Duty Free also. Under the new plans, any alcohol bought in duty free would have to be stored away from passengers on flights, or in sealed bags which can be checked by cabin crew.
Recent police statistics suggest that at least 442 people were arrested between March 2014 and March 2016 for being drunk and disorderly while either at the airport or on a plane.
New aviation minister Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon questioned airports being allowed to sell alcohol 24 hours a day due to them not being subjected to licensing laws.
He said: “If you’re a young family travelling on a plane you want to go from point A to B, you don’t want to be disrupted.
I don’t think we want to kill merriment altogether, but I think it’s important that passengers who board planes are also responsible and have a responsibility to other passengers, and that certainly should be the factor which we bear in mind.”
Glasgow and Manchester airports have already have trialled in a scheme with shops selling alcohol in sealed bags in a bid to reduce problems on flights – and you have to wonder whether other governments, such as Ireland’s, will follow the UK’s example?
Could this mean the end of classic television moments like this one?
