The situation overview examines cases where passengers have behaved inappropriately or caused a disturbance at an airport or on an aircraft. The information is updated twice a year in Finnish and annually in English. The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom is responsible for producing the information.
Unruly passengers
The International Civil Aviation Organisation ICAO defines an unruly passenger as "A passenger who fails to respect the rules of conduct at an airport or on board an aircraft or to follow the instructions of the airport staff or crew members and thereby disturbs the good order and discipline at an airport or on board the aircraft."
In this review, as regards to airports, unruly passengers refer to persons who are arriving or departing at the airport as passengers, not, for example, persons who have come to the airport to escort a passenger or who are otherwise randomly present at the airport.
Unruly passengers 2025
In 2025, 283 cases were reported where a passenger behaved disruptively at a Finnish airport or on a Finnish aircraft. The number was higher than the previous year and clearly above the long-term average.
On May 14, 2025, Traficom launched a joint campaign "Aseta itsesi lentotilaan" (Set yourself to flight mode) (External link) in cooperation with other aviation industry operators, aiming to influence the reduction of disruptive behavior.
The majority of last year's disruptive behavior cases occurred again during the en-route phase of the flight. Also in previous years, this was the most typical phase. In these situations, the passenger had, for example, behaved threateningly or disruptively or was significantly intoxicated. Intoxication combined with failure to comply with crew instructions is a safety risk to the person concerned as well as to others on the aircraft.
Of the situations occurring at Finnish airports, the overwhelming majority took place at Helsinki Airport, as it is also clearly the busiest airport in terms of passenger numbers. In Helsinki, the figures were approximately at the level of the previous year.
Event types
Disruptive behavior during flight can be divided into three typical manifestations:
- The largest group of these is disruptive behavior (verbal harassment, excessive intoxication, smoking). In 2025, a total of 174 cases of this type were reported. In the previous year, the number was 150.
- Another significant type of incident is failure to follow instructions given by the crew (ignoring the seatbelt warning light, failing to follow given safety instructions and orders, tampering with safety equipment), of which a total of 102 cases were reported in 2025. In 2024, the number was 107.
- The most serious form is physical violence. A total of 7 such cases were reported in 2025. In the previous year, the number was 10.
Smoking in aircraft toilets is also a risk factor for a fire on board the aircraft, the consequences of which can be very serious and, in the worst case, lead to loss of control of the aircraft. The development of these cases has been discussed in more detail in the section on fires and smoke observations.
At airports, a typical situation was related to intoxication or verbal harassment. For example, jokes about bombs are always taken seriously in aviation and the situation is always treated as a real threat. The result of such speech is most often denial of boarding and the police being called (removal from the airport and possibly a fine).
Passengers should remember that at the airport and on the plane, they are the only ones responsible for their own behavior and its possible consequences. Disruptive behavior cannot and will not be tolerated.