Ryanair welcomes decision by Malta court to convict disruptive passenger

Kenneth Fox

Ryanair has welcomed the decision by the Malta court to convict a passenger who disrupted a flight from Cologne to Malta on March 22nd by smoking onboard and refusing to follow crew instructions.

The passenger pleaded guilty in court and received a €2,000 fine.

Ryanair said they committed to ensuring that all passengers and crew travel in a safe and respectful environment free of unnecessary disruption caused by a tiny number of unruly passengers.

They have a strict zero tolerance policy towards passenger misconduct and will continue to take action to combat unruly passenger behaviour on aircraft for the benefit of the vast majority of passengers who do not disrupt flights.

A Ryanair spokesperson said: “It is unacceptable that passengers, many of whom are travelling with young families, are forced to suffer unnecessary disruption because of one unruly passenger’s behaviour.

"Ryanair supports the Malta court decision to issue a €2,000 fine to an unruly passenger who disrupted flight FR5205 from Cologne to Malta on Saturday, March 22nd.

"This underscores our commitment to maintaining a safe and respectful environment for both crew and passengers on all Ryanair flights.

"Ryanair has a strict zero tolerance policy towards passenger misconduct, and we will continue to take action, including travel bans, supporting investigations by local law enforcement authorities, and pursuing civil damages to combat passenger misconduct onboard our flights.”