US airline attendants may soon have to add a sobering skill: complete alcohol server training.
US Rep. Tom Udall has proposed legislation requiring flight and gate attendants pass alcohol training courses.
Current federal regulations prohibit an intoxicated person to board or to be served alcohol on a flight. However, only some airlines provide training to help attendants identify and deal with drunken passengers, said Mr Udall, a New Mexico Democrat.
“It’s simple — training attendants to identify inebriated passengers either boarding or already on a flight is critical to ensuring they make informed decisions when serving alcohol,” he said.
An airline would be fined up to $25,000 a day if found in violation of the law.
Udall began researching airline server protocol late last year following a crash involving Dana Papst of Tesuque. Police say he was drunk when he drove the wrong way on Interstate 25 near Santa Fe and killed five members of a Las Vegas, N.M., family and himself.
An airline had served alcohol to Mr Papst just hours before the crash even though witnesses said he appeared intoxicated.
Report by David Wilkening
