# If you get drunk on an airplane, forcing it to be diverted, should you lose your job? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 6, 2011, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208 "2011-12-06T01:01:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/121 "2011-12-09T17:19:43Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > No, I saw it. I simply ignored it, as it was unsupported. If you’re prepared to provide solid citations to relevant Canadian cases or statute law dealing with the pertinent issue, I’ll reconsider my position. You made extensive legal comments without citation in posts #64 and #90. Why don’t you ask a moderator to delete those posts? > [@Spoons](#): > > Hey I showed, through citations, why AC is not liable to the passengers and why it wouldn’t be worth anyone’s while to sue. Now you show me, _through citations_ and not your opinion, why AC is liable to the passengers. I showed why there might be a hole in your citations as applied to this case, and it was not necessary to use other citations to do so. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/122 "2011-12-09T17:24:20Z")
The articles I can find are a little short of detail as to WTF these two fellows were fighting with the cabin crew about. I must admit to being a bit curious. Anyone have any details? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/123 "2011-12-09T17:44:07Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > The articles I can find are a little short of detail as to WTF these two fellows were fighting with the cabin crew about. I must admit to being a bit curious. Anyone have any details? I’ve come up blank. [http://www.richmond.ca/safety/police/news/releases/planediverted.htm](http://www.richmond.ca/safety/police/news/releases/planediverted.htm) > [@](#): > > On November 28th around 6:30 p.m. Richmond RCMP received a report that an Air Canada flight was being diverted to the Vancouver International Airport after two unruly passengers had to be restrained by the airline crew. [http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/305469--unruly-pair-faces-big-fine-after-flight-diverted-to-yvr](http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/305469--unruly-pair-faces-big-fine-after-flight-diverted-to-yvr) > [@](#): > > “To sum it up, they just simply weren’t behaving,” explains Corporal Sherrdean Turley with the Richmond RCMP. “They were in a drunken state, and weren’t listening to anything the flight crew was telling them or asking them to do so they were actually restrained.” ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/124 "2011-12-09T18:21:53Z")
> [@colonial](#): > > You made extensive legal comments without citation in posts #64 and #90. > > Why don’t you ask a moderator to delete those posts? The only times moderators here delete posts hereabouts is when this get rid of spam threads. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/125 "2011-12-09T18:52:15Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > The only times moderators here delete posts hereabouts is when this get rid of spam threads. Maybe they will make an exception. Never hurts to ask! ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/126 "2011-12-09T19:00:28Z")
Since you are the one who seems to want the post deleted it is on you to contact a moderator. I will say, however, that they seldom, very seldom, delete anything on this forum. Something it is wise to remember, as whatever a person says here will remain here. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/127 "2011-12-09T19:13:19Z")
> [@colonial](#): > > You made extensive legal comments without citation in posts #64 and #90. > > Why don’t you ask a moderator to delete those posts? Am I reaing this correctly? colonial wants a moderator to delete a couple of posts made by a reputable Canadian lawyer on a Canadian legal issue? ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/128 "2011-12-09T19:21:49Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > I’ve come up blank. > > [http://www.richmond.ca/safety/police/news/releases/planediverted.htm](http://www.richmond.ca/safety/police/news/releases/planediverted.htm) > > [http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/305469--unruly-pair-faces-big-fine-after-flight-diverted-to-yvr](http://www.news1130.com/news/local/article/305469--unruly-pair-faces-big-fine-after-flight-diverted-to-yvr) Thanks for looking - not that it would make much difference to the analysis, given that they have pled guilty, but I must admit to wondering exactly what triggered them. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/129 "2011-12-09T19:43:57Z")
My guess is that, boys being boys, they were a bit too boisterous. The flight attendants thought joining in would be fun and broke out the handcuffs. Not being ones to enjoy a bit of S&M, the drunks put up a struggle, which only excited the flight atendants even more, eventually resulting the the frequent fliers joining the mile high club. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/130 "2011-12-09T20:25:55Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Since you are the one who seems to want the post deleted it is on you to contact a moderator. I will say, however, that they seldom, very seldom, delete anything on this forum. Something it is wise to remember, as whatever a person says here will remain here. I guess you and others here have trouble understanding the English language unless text is larded with emoticons. Try this: :rolleyes: My comment was sarcastic. The message correctly noted that Mr.Spoons had violated his own requirement concerning citation, and that rather than let the offending posts stand he might want them to be deleted. Got it now? ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/131 "2011-12-09T20:33:37Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Am I reaing this correctly? No. See reply #130. > [@Muffin](#): > > colonial wants a moderator to delete a couple of posts Furthermore, I myelf would actually prefer that the posts remain as is since they reveal inconsistency on the part of an opponent. > [@Muffin](#): > > made by a reputable Canadian lawyer on a Canadian legal issue? You are being ridiculous. If there is to be a citation requirement then lawyers should have to abide by it just like everyone else. PS: I have no idea if he is reputable, or even if he is really a lawyer. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/132 "2011-12-09T20:40:06Z")
> [@colonial](#): > > I guess you and others here have trouble understanding the English language > unless text is larded with emoticons. Try this: :rolleyes: > > My comment was sarcastic. The message correctly noted that Mr.Spoons had > violated his own requirement concerning citation, and that rather than let the > offending posts stand he might want them to be deleted. > > Got it now? Two points: 1. Sarcasm often does not translate to text. Hence the evolution of conventions like [/sarcasm] 😃 and :rolleyes: and the like to indicate you are not entirely serious. 2. If no one picked up that you were sarcastic then the problem might not be us, it might be that you did not effectively convey your message. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/133 "2011-12-09T21:59:37Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Two points: > > 1. Sarcasm often does not translate to text. Hence the evolution of conventions like [/sarcasm] 😃 and :rolleyes: and the like to indicate you are not entirely serious. > > 2. If no one picked up that you were sarcastic then the problem might not be us, it might be that you did not effectively convey your message. Typos aside, I am confident that my writing is clear enough to discriminating readers. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/134 "2011-12-09T22:10:27Z")
Guess I lost my ability as a discriminating reader when I stopped teaching English at universities and colleges. My bad. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/135 "2011-12-09T22:36:43Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Guess I lost my ability as a discriminating reader when I stopped teaching English at universities and colleges. My bad. You probably ODed on the likes of Joyce, Eliot and Pound. No smilie. It has been scientifically, peer-review proven that any attention given to those writers causes irreversible damage to general reading comprehension ability. (I will leave it to your discrimating mind’s eye to decide if smilies should be understood to exist anywhere in the last two lines) ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/136 "2011-12-09T22:38:52Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > My guess is that, boys being boys, they were a bit too boisterous. The flight attendants thought joining in would be fun and broke out the handcuffs. Not being ones to enjoy a bit of S&M, the drunks put up a struggle, which only excited the flight atendants even more, eventually resulting the the frequent fliers joining the mile high club. I like the way you guess. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/137 "2011-12-09T22:46:32Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Guess I lost my ability as a discriminating reader when I stopped teaching English at universities and colleges. My bad. Forget it, Muffin. It’s Chinatown. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2011, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/138 "2011-12-09T22:57:28Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Forget it, Muffin. It’s Chinatown. Someone take a head-first spill from his Batmobile? That has also been known to impair reading comp abilities. Can even make you go completely batty! ---
**Author:** ![artemis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@artemis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/artemis)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/139 "2011-12-10T01:20:13Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Here’s what I want to know: Why should a plane be diverted just because some people got disorderly? They’re not terrorists, they’re not going to blow anything up. Just lock them in the bathroom and proceed normally. They may not be able to blow up the plane, but they sure could seriously injure other passengers or the flight attendants - and once that plane sets off across the Pacific, any medical help is going to be far, far away. And locking them in the bathroom is totally impractical, as the other passengers are going to need to use it. Thirteen hours is a very long time to have to keep your legs crossed! And bathroom space is barely adequate on planes as it is. Have you ever taken a trans-Pacific flight? They’re hellish enough even without the presence of dangerously unruly people aboard. The Air Canada crew made the right call when they diverted. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2011, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208/140 "2011-12-10T02:51:13Z")
Hey Malthus, the CBC says they [chewed through the restraints](http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/12/09/rim-execs-flight.html)! Gotta wonder about the bit about them passing out, then waking up and drinking more. Why was alcohol available to them when they regained consciousness? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-get-drunk-on-an-airplane-forcing-it-to-be-diverted-should-you-lose-your-job/605208.md?page=8)