Tourists heading to Ibiza and Majorca may face booze limit at BRITISH airports
THE Balearic government is going to call for a limit on alcohol consumption at airports in a bid to curb the growing problem of drunk passengers on flights.
Officials say a total ban is not realistic and would be impossible to achieve but cracking down on the amount people drink at airports and on the planes themselves would be a step in the right direction.
The Balearic government has teamed up with the European Alcohol Policy Alliance to lobby for changes and says it will press for official legislation if necessary.
Delegate of the Balearic Islands in Europe, Antoni Vicens will make a call in Brussels today for an international summit between the main airlines, tour operators and airport directors, according to Spanish newspaper .
He told the newspaper: "The problem is getting bigger and encompasses what could be called uncivil tourism.
“The intention is to organise an event in Palma with various international players to see how we can act jointly against a practice that poses a serious risk to air security."
The European Alcohol Policy Alliance is a powerful association with a presence throughout Europe dedicated to the fight against alcoholism.
Antoni said the Balearic Executive is committed to limit - not prohibit - the consumption of alcoholic beverages in airports and planes.
He said "We have to be realistic. It is very complicated to approve a total ban.
"We ask to restrict the consumption before arrival at the destination airports, which is where we have the problem.
“We cannot allow drunk passengers to access planes to the Balearic Islands or to [carry on] getting drink on the flight."
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The Balearics say individual airlines, such as Ryanair, are trying to combat the problem but it needs a joint effort.
There has been a string of incidents on holiday flights to destinations such as Majorca and Ibiza and government officials are pointing out the high cost of having to deal with such incidents.
They say they will have to battle against the fact that the sale of alcohol at airports is big business in the duty free shops, restaurants and bars.
However, airports are regarded as the place where the drink problems begin and then continue on the planes.
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Ryanair wants airports to limit the sale of alcoholic beverages per passenger and has suggested marking boarding cards as a way of checking.
They propose serving a maximum of two drinks per passenger or not selling alcohol before 10am.
Sun Online Travel previously revealed that a Ryanair flight attendant falsely warned passengers they'd be fined £2,000 if they drank their booze from duty free on a flight.