American Airlines to resume serving alcohol on flights after nine-month ban
Ban lifted despite thousands of unruly passenger incidents
Astrong
An American Airlines jet
(Getty Images)
Ban lifted despite thousands of unruly passenger incidents
American Airlines has announced that it will start serving alcohol on its flights once more from 18 April, following a nearly nine-month ban.
The change to catering rules comes in conjunction with the end of the US’ federal mask mandate across all transport, which has been extended until the same date (although this may be extended again).
American was one of several US airlines, including Southwest and Delta, to ban the sale of alcohol on its flights during 2021 following a surge in the number of unruly passenger incidents during the pandemic.
Meanwhile, in Europe, easyJet and KLM both halted alcohol sales for a period of the pandemic, as did Virgin Australia.
Southwest Airlines reinstated alcohol sales on its flights in February, leaving American as the last booze-free airline standing.
In recent months, American had continued serving alcohol in first class, while removing it from trolleys in economy.
"Our customers have expressed that having these options onboard is important to their experience with us," the carrier said in a statement this week.
Spirits such as gin, rum, vodka and whiskey - as well as wine - will cost $9 (£6.85), while beers will be priced at $8 (£6).
Disruptive passenger incidents skyrocketed during the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021, there were 5,981 reports of unruly passengers on US airlines, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Of those, 4,290 were mask-related.
In response, airlines including Delta called for a nationwide “no-fly” list, which would ban unruly passengers across all airlines after an offence on one.
However, last month eight Republican senators spoke out against the proposed list, saying it would unfairly equate mask refusers with terrorists.
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