CRI听力:Flight 'Blacklist' System under Discussion in China

Discussions are now underway in China about the possible creation of a "blacklist" for people involved in illegal or disruptive behavior on flights. [Photo: finance.sina.com.cn]

Aviation industry insiders say discussions are now underway in China about the possible creation of a "blacklist" for people involved in illegal or disruptive behavior on flights.

The discussion comes on the heels of a series of incidents involving Chinese travellers.

CRI's Wang Mengzhen has details.

Flight 'Blacklist' System under Discussion in China 

In one of the latest incidents, a man was arrested in Inner Mongolia's capital Hohhot last week after he tried to open the emergency door while on a fight from Hunan's capital Changsha to Hohhot.

Witnesses say the man appeared to be drunk.

This incident is the latest in a series of air-rage events involving Chinese travellers.

A few weeks ago, a flight from Bangkok to China had to return to the Thai capital after Chinese passengers became involved in a dispute with the air staff on the flight, leading to a flight attendant being scalded with hot water.

Incidents involving disruptive Chinese travellers appear to be growing.

Zhang Qihuai, an aviation expert with a Beijing-based law firm, says there are some factors that tend to lead to air-rage.

"On the one hand, the educational background and temperament of passengers can be quite different. They can act-out and break laws and regulations without even knowing it. But at the same time, the quality and temperament of flight crews, as well as customer service at the airports, can also lead to problems."

Numerous brawls among passengers and attacks on cabin crew are often filmed and posted online in China, creating a growing perception around the world that Chinese travellers are rude and hard to deal with.

As such, Diao Weimin, an associate professor with the civil aviation management institute of China, says steps can be taken to ensure rowdy passengers don't become a potential threat.

"Based on the rules laid-out by the International Civil Aviation Organization, airlines do have the right to prevent passengers who have disturbed a flight or failed to follow orders from the cabin crew from flying. This has become an international convention. However, the application of the rules is different among different domestic flight companies. I think we should set up a unified 'blacklist' system to root out problem passengers."

However, legal expert Zhang Qihuai says he's not sure a unified "blacklist" system is necessary.

"In my opinion, the existing laws and regulations are sufficient to limit illegal behavior among passengers. It is not right to set up a 'blacklist' for passengers with bad manners, since it is only supposed to be used to keep suspected terrorists or criminals off flights. It's also not right for individual airlines to start drafting rules covering the aviation system."

While there have been numerous incidents involving unruly and potentially-dangerous acts on airlines involving Chinese passengers, at this point, none have led to any mid-air catastrophes.

For CRI, I am Wang Mengzhen.