The U.S. Department of Transportation is launching what it's calling a "civility campaign" to promote good behavior on flights and at airports, as the busy holiday travel season gets underway. The department is naming the campaign "The Golden Age of Travel Starts with You" and announced the effort in a press release last week.
The DOT shared a minute-and-a-half video that begins with images of airline travelers of decades past, set to Frank Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me." The video then shifts abruptly to tense music and video clips of bare feet swiping on an in-flight monitor and then a series of brawls on flights.
Secretary Sean Duffy then poses five questions he says every air traveler should ask themselves this holiday season. The questions include: Are you helping a pregnant woman put her bag in the overhead bin; are you dressing with respect; and are you saying thank you to your flight attendants and pilots.
"The campaign is intended to jumpstart a nationwide conversation around how we can all restore courtesy and class to air travel," the press release reads. "This won't just make the travel experience better for the flying public — it will ensure the safety of passengers, gate workers, flight attendants, and pilots."
The DOT cites a rise in bad behavior on board. The agency says there have been 13,800 incidents involving unruly passengers since 2021. Since 2019, the Federal Aviation Administration has seen a 400% increase in in-flight outbursts, according to the Transportation Department.
In 2023, the FAA reported nearly 2,000 incidents, which was a sharp decline from the height of the pandemic when mask mandates fueled many disputes.
The FAA expects this Thanksgiving holiday to be the busiest for air travel in 15 years, with Tuesday seeing the most air travelers. AAA projects 6 million people will be flying in the U.S. for the Thanksgiving holiday.
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