Long gone are the days when tobacco-loving passengers were permitted to mass at the back of the plane to light up and get their nicotine fixes. Today, essentially every commercial flight must be smoke free.
But that doesn’t stop some passengers trying: Korean Air, for example, reported 266 cases of in-flight smoking (more than one every other day) in 2016. While that number has gradually been reduced – there were only 208 cases in 2018 – the South Korean flag carrier announced late last month that it will be taking strict measures to stamp out smoking of all kinds on board its flights.
In a strongly worded press release, the airline stated its goal to “eradicate” in-flight smoking and threatened to hand over offending passengers to the local police in any jurisdiction, domestic or foreign.
Korean Air says the use of e-cigarettes, which emit a vapour which some experts say is less harmful than the carcinogenic smoke from conventional cigarettes, is on the rise on its flights, despite it being prohibited to smoke or charge them onboard, whether the plane is on the ground or in the air.
“E-cigarettes can be brought on board, but they may not be charged nor smoked,” Korean Air’s press release said.
In 2018, 34% of in-flight smoking was with e-cigarettes and 66% with conventional cigarettes, but in 2019, in-flight e-cigarette use was 54% and conventional cigarette use only 46%, a Korean Air spokesperson told Business Traveller Asia-Pacific. Whenever smoking occurs on the plane, all cases are reported through an internal cabin safety report, specifying which type of cigarette was used, the spokesperson added.
“Smoking during flights is strictly prohibited by law due to the risk of inciting fires. In addition, smoking can cause discomfort to other passengers and can also wear down the in-flight air filtration equipment,” Korean Air’s press release said.
The airline has asked its cabin crew to be more vigilant about inflight smoking and has given them additional training on the matter.
“Cabin crew are being trained to be aware of the diverse types of e-cigarettes and take proper and strong action if passengers disregard the regulations,” Korean Air said in its press release.
Asked for clarification on what type of training cabin crew would undergo, the Korean Air spokesperson said: “They were notified through a written notice on the company’s online bulletin board, which features episodes of recent in-flight smoking incidents, types/characteristics/images of e-cigarette, and the necessary measures to take.”
A common concern
Korean Air said in its press release that “smoking on flights, including that of e-cigarettes, is a common concern for airlines around the world as it undermines the safety of the flight”.
The airline notes that The International Air Transport Association (IATA), the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), also strongly regulate smoking on board, including that of e-cigarettes.
In a May 2019-dated “Unruly Passengers Fact Sheet”, IATA cited “non-compliance with smoking regulations” as being one of its top three unruly passenger issues.
“Although such acts are committed by a tiny minority of passengers, they have a disproportionate impact. They create inconvenience, threaten the comfort, safety and security of other passengers and crew, and lead to significant operational disruption and costs for airlines,” IATA said.
IATA notes that unruly passengers, including in-flight smokers, can often get away with their behaviour because of what IATA considers to be flaws in an aspect of aviation law.
“The main issue is that the state where an aircraft is registered has jurisdiction over offenses committed onboard. This causes issues when the aircraft is away from its country of registration because the police do not have jurisdiction to deal with the incident and unruly passengers are often released without charge,” IATA said.
According to Korean Air, under South Korean law, a fine will be imposed if in-flight smoking, including that of e-cigarettes, is detected.
According to Article 23.1.2 of the Aviation Security Act (passenger’s cooperative duties), in-flight smoking is strictly prohibited in order to ensure the safe operations and travel of aircraft and passengers. If a person smokes inside an aircraft on the ground or in the air, they will be fined up to five or 10 million won (US$4,254 or US$8,507), respectively, as stated in Article 50 of the Aviation Security Act (penalties).
A cheeky puff
Since the vapour from latest generation vaping devices like Juul dissipates quickly and leaves much less smell than a conventional cigarette, some passengers may be tempted to head to the plane toilet for a cheeky puff. But Korean Air has a stern warning for those passengers.
“The smoke detector attached to the airplane’s toilet does not only detect regular cigarette smoke, but also that of e-cigarettes,” a Korean Air spokesperson said. “Passengers’ cooperation is essential to tackle in-flight smoking, including that of e-cigarettes, which is an illegal act that seriously undermines the safety of the aircraft and is harmful to the health of passengers.”
Passengers should also take note that chewing tobacco and snus, a Swedish form of smokeless tobacco, are also prohibited on Korean Air flights.
The problem of e-cigarette use is not confined to passengers using the devices. In July 2018, an Air China flight from Hong Kong to Dalian had to descend rapidly after the flight’s co-pilot tried to turn off a circulation fan in order to prevent smoke or smells from his e-cigarette from reaching the cabin.
“[But the co-pilot] mistakenly switched off the air-conditioning unit that was next to it, resulting in insufficient oxygen in the cabin and an altitude warning,” according to Inkstone, which cited the state-run Xinhua News Agency.
