Delta Airlines propose a shared 'no fly' list for better safety onboard

Delta Airlines has banned over 1,600 people from flying with them since the US government mandated face coverings on flights. Photo / Nick Morales, Unsplash

Since the beginning of the pandemic, American airlines have banned hundreds of unruly passengers from the skies.

Now, Delta Airlines wants carriers to band together and share their lists.

In a memo to flight attendants on Wednesday, Delta's senior vice president of in-flight service Kristen Manion Taylor asked "other airlines to share their 'no fly' list to further protect airline employees across the industry — something we know is top of mind for you as well."

Taylor pointing out that banned customer lists aren't as effective if people can simply hop on a different airline and continue to cause trouble.

The tale of unruly passengers is one as old as time and this isn't the first time the industry has called for a shared no-fly list.

The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, a 50,000-strong organisation of cabin crew across several American airlines, has previously called for a centralised database to prevent incidents of verbal abuse and physical assault.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which provide global standards for airline safety, security, efficiency and sustainability said it supported the right for airlines to refuse passengers whose conduct posed a health and safety threat.

However, when it came to combined no-fly lists, IATA said it wasn't quite as simple as just swapping lists.

"The sharing of lists of such passengers between airlines across borders or on a global basis is not currently possible without governments agreeing on a framework consistent with international law," they said.

It's an agreement that may only become more necessary. This year America's Federal Aviation Administration has received 4385 reports for unruly behaviour. Almost 75 per cent of which are related to passengers refusing to follow the federal mask mandate.

Already the FFA have started investigating more than 600 of the incidents, nearly double the combined number of investigated incidents in 2019 and 2020 according to the Associated Press.

Since issuing a zero-tolerance policy for the incidents, the FAA saw the rate of reports drop 50 per cent to six incidents per 10,000 flights. A number the FAA said is still too high.

Delta Airlines alone has banned more than 1600 people from flying with them since the US government made face coverings mandatory.