Hill Denounces Cockpit Door Locks as Solution to “Air Rage”

February 15, 2001

OTTAWA- Canadian Alliance Chief Transportation Critic, Jay Hill, denounced the order by the Minister of Transportation requiring that all flight deck doors of Canadian aircraft be equipped with locks as a solution to air rage incidents.

“Yesterday’s air rage summit was a complete failure if all that has resulted from it is an increase in the sale of cockpit door locks.” stated Hill. “Despite the fact that participation in the summit was limited to a few select members of the airline industry, we had hoped that a more in-depth discussion of the issue would take place. What ensued instead was a discussion on how to punish passengers who get irritated during air travel, often as a result of frustration in dealing with the airline.”

The Air Transport Association of Canada has been lobbying for stricter regulations and new criminal code provisions to deal with the phenomenon of “air rage”.

“We agree with the air carriers that the safety of all air travellers is the issue, but before we determine what the punishment will be, we need to understand the root cause of the problem. Instead of locking doors, the Minister of Transportation should be unlocking them by establishing regulations that would require mandatory reporting of incidents of abuse by a passenger or a crewmember so that we are able to get an accurate appreciation of the problem. Only then can we develop appropriate solutions.”

Hill also suggested that the Minister could require all airlines to include a video in their pre-flight safety briefing that informs passengers of unacceptable air travel behaviour as a means of educating both passengers and crew about the phenomenon.