DISPAX World 2023 conference programme released.

The organisers of DISPAX World 2023 have designed a conference programme, moderated by Philip Baum, Brian Kinane and Aaron Le Boutillier, that, in addition to examining techniques and strategies that may be implemented by cabin crew, also highlights the importance of technical crew in the practical management of unruly passenger incidents.

DISPAX World commences with three crewmembers’ accounts of unruly incidents, followed by a myth-busting session in which the organisers aim to quash some of the myths being disseminated in aircrew security training. We start with the Tokyo Convention. Is there really blanket immunity from prosecution when it comes to the management of unruly passengers? Are crew assuming that ‘immunity from prosecution’ equates with ‘immunity from litigation’?

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Then we explore whether a passenger, once restrained, may be physically restrained to their seat. Many airlines tell their crews that this is illegal as it could impede the passenger’s ability to disembark the aircraft in the extremely unlikely event of an emergency landing or ditching.

The session concludes with an analysis of whether alcohol, narcotics and medication really do have a greater impact aboard an aircraft flying at altitude than they do on the ground.

Xenophobia is the wake of a pandemic is next up. COVID-19 exerted a heavy price on the industry, but it also changed the way in which we interact with each other. Daniela Modonesi, representing the European Transport Workers Federation, looks back at the pandemic and considers its legacy in terms of passenger behaviour.

Quashing the myths of unruly passengers.....

Unruly airline passenger incidents are on the increase and pose a continuous problem for the aviation industry - specifically for the flight attendants who have the responsibility of managing cabin safety, but also for other passengers who have to witness such incidents or are in other ways affected by them. 

There are a multitude of events which appear in both aviation and the mass media, and an even greater number of unreported incidents, which plague the industry and impact crewmembers, and the travelling public, around the globe. DISPAX World 2023 returns this year in a post-pandemic environment which aims to dispel some of the myths circulating around the airline industry and cut out the fact from the fiction.

In one of the opening sessions they'll cover three main topics :

One -  We start with the protection afforded carriers and their aircrew by the Tokyo Convention. Is there really blanket immunity from prosecution when it comes to the management of unruly passengers? Are crew assuming that ‘immunity from prosecution’ equates with ‘immunity from litigation’? Dr Rebekah Tanti-Dougall (Tanti-Dougall & Associates, Malta) will highlight the limitations of the protection ‘guaranteed’, highlighting the importance of distinguishing between criminal and civil action that may be taken and the consideration that needs to be given to the incorporation of the Convention’s standards into national law within the State in which the aircraft lands. 

Two -  Whilst many aircraft carry restraint kits for application on unruly passengers, there are differing views as to whether a passenger, once restrained, may be physically restrained to their seat. Many airlines tell their crews that this is illegal as it could impede the passenger’s ability to disembark the aircraft in the extremely unlikely event of an emergency landing or ditching. Dr. Sofia Mateou (Associate Professor, Aviation Management, Prince Sultan University, Saudi Arabia) considers whether this is indeed the case given that the unruly passenger has already endangered the safety of the aircraft.

Three   - We conclude the session with an analysis of whether alcohol, narcotics and medication really do have a greater impact aboard an aircraft flying at altitude that they do on the ground. Frederick Reitz (Managing Director, SAFEsky Inc, USA) distils fact from fiction and, given that the aircraft cabin is pressurised (so nobody is really experiencing high altitude conditions), discusses whether it is true these substances can exaggerate bad behaviour or whether it is simply untrue that ‘one drink in the sky is worth two on the ground’.

Direct route to registration:

http://dispax.world/registration/

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Unruly airline passenger incidents are on the increase.....

There is no doubt that unruly airline passenger incidents are on the increase and pose a continuous problem for the aviation industry - specifically for the flight attendants who have the responsibility of managing cabin safety, but also for other passengers who have to witness such incidents or are in other ways affected by them. 

An example of this unruly behaviour occurred on a Glasgow to Tenerife in early April this year that saw the UK's third largest airline Jet2, ban passenger Eric Forrest, 55, from Beith for life from flying with the airline for life over a catalogue of disgraceful behaviour on the flight, week, which included urinating in the cabin and intimidating other passengers including children. Jet2 is also billing Forrest for all the costs associated with the delays and diversion his actions caused. 

There are a multitude of events which appear in both aviation and the mass media, and an even greater number of unreported incidents, which plague the industry and impact crewmembers, and the travelling public, around the globe. DISPAX World 2023 returns this year in a post-pandemic environment, yet at a time of geopolitical turmoil, to explore best practices for mitigating the ever-evolving challenges posed to the aviation industry by passenger behaviour.

DISPAX WORLD 2023,   Czech Republic,  11 - 12 October 2023 

DISPAX World 2023 is the 4th international conference on unruly passenger management and restraint. Its overall aim is to increase awareness and knowledge regarding the causal factors of disruptive behaviour, share best practice between carriers, and to provide a forum in which industry professionals can discuss innovative techniques for the improvement of the quality of training afforded crew to both prevent incidents escalating in the first place and, should that fail, to ensure they have the skillsets to manage aggression and violence in the skies. 

The fourth edition of the conference – being the first in the post-pandemic era - will be addressing:

Best practice in aircrew security training;

Quashing myths associated with the causes of unruly behaviour;

Responsibility of airlines to address forseeable risk;

Airport best practice in unruly pax management; 

Xenophobia and extremism in the aircraft cabin;

Biomechinical considerations in physical interventions;

Faked disruptive behaviour to disguise other criminal acts;

Sexually abusive behaviour towards crew and fellow passengers; and,

Demonstrations of restraint kits

DISPAX World 2023 will take place at Prague Airport’s Congress Hall.

The Programme...

The programme, chaired by Philip Baum (Managing Director, Green Light and Visiting Professor, Aviation Security, at Coventry University) includes presentations from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the European Transport Workers Federation, academics and representatives of a broad range of airlines keen to demonstrate their approach to unruly airline passenger management and restraint.

To see the continually updated programme online, do visit us at: 

Programme – DISPAX WORLD

Organiser 

Green Light Ltd. is a London-based security training and consultancy company which specialises in aviation security and, in particular, the delivery of training courses on Inflight Security and Unruly Passenger Management and Restraint.

Green Light organised DISPAX World conferences in 2009 (Istanbul), in 2014 (London) and in 2019 (London). Other events organised by Green Light have included: Body Search 2015 (London); Inflight Emergency Response 2016 (Riga); Behavioural Analysis 2018 (Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Wales), Behavioural Analysis 2019 (Mall of America, Minneapolis, USA), Behavioural Analysis Week Online 2020 (Online, Global) and Behavioural Analysis 2022 (University of Northampton, UK) and Behavioural Analysis 2023 (Prague Airport, Czech Republic)

You can read more about the organiser at:-

www.avsec.com 

You can read more about previous DISPAX World conferences at:-

http://dispax.world/past-conferences/ 

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