An American Airlines flight attendant serves drinks to passengers after departing Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Robert Alexander/Getty Images
The U.S. Department of Transportation is launching a “civility campaign” to promote better behavior on flights and at airports as the busy holiday travel season begins. Named “The Golden Age of Travel Starts with You,” the campaign was announced in a department press release last week.
The DOT shared a minute-and-a-half video that opens with images of airline travel from decades past set to Frank Sinatra’s “Come Fly With Me,” then shifts to tense music and clips of in-flight conflicts. Secretary Sean Duffy poses five questions he says every traveler should ask themselves this holiday season, including: Are you helping a pregnant woman stow her bag in the overhead bin; are you dressing with respect; and are you thanking 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 release says. “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 onboard. 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 department.
In 2023, the FAA reported nearly 2,000 incidents, 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 travelers. AAA projects 6 million people will be flying in the U.S. for the Thanksgiving holiday.
