What are the rules around wearing headphones on flights? United Airlines bans noisy passengers
United Airlines says customers who play audio from phones for all to hear face a ban from future flights
United Airlines has threatened to permanently ban passengers who play music or videos without headphones on flights.
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The US airline, which flies from London Heathrow in the UK, has updated its Refusal of Transport regulations which could also see noisy customers banned from listening to audio if they blast it out from devices around the plane.
A statement read: “UA has the right to refuse transport, on a permanent basis, any passenger who engages in any of the activities in this rule.”
It added: “We’ve always encouraged customers to use headphones when listening to audio content — and our Wi-Fi rules already remind customers to use headphones.
“With the expansion of Starlink [the in-plane internet system] it seemed like a good time to make that even clearer by adding it to the contract of carriage.”
United added that customers who forget to bring their own headphones can be provided with a pair for free.
But how does this compare to other airlines?
What are the laws in the UK around wearing headphones on flights?
There are laws in place in the UK to ban antisocial behaviour on public transport, although there are frequently complaints of music blaring on buses and trains.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan last summer launched a campaign called Travel Kind which saw posters discouraging the playing of music directly from phones, without headphones.
The Liberal Democrats have already pushed for similar action, calling for “headphone dodgers” who play music out loud on buses and trains to face fines of up to £1,000.
What are the rules around wearing headphones on flights?
Travel expert Scott Keyes told the Independent that United Airlines is the first to state that offenders could be banned - but Delta and Southwest were both found to have rules against playing audio aloud.
American Airlines had an incident only last week, where a woman was recorded being ejected after watching a video and then launching a sweary tirade about her treatment.