As United Airlines continues to improve its selection and quality of alcohol onboard, it is introducing a new “huddle process”  this spring to efficiently remove passengers who display signs of intoxication onboard during the boarding process.

New “Huddle Process” At United Airlines To Prevent Intoxicated Passengers From Flying

Federal law prohibits intoxicated passengers from boarding a commercial aircraft, but sometimes an intoxicated passenger can slip through the boarding process and board. When that happens, there is another opportunity to remove the intoxicated passengers before takeoff, but it requires careful coordination between flight attendants and ground staff, especially if the passenger exhibits signs of being boisterous or unruly.

To streamline this process, United is introducing a new “huddle process” that will begin on May 1, 2025, as outlined in a memo reviewed by Live And Let’s Fly.

As United describes it, “After boarding, if two flight attendants independently observe a customer exhibiting red light behavior(s) the Inflight team will call a mandatory huddle between Inflight, Flight Ops and Airport Operations to facilitate customer removal from the aircraft. This new huddle process is designed to handle situations where red light behaviors may not have been visible during boarding and a customer that appears to be intoxicated makes their way onto an aircraft.”

I’ve written before about the “Traffic Light System” United Airlines uses to gauge whether a flyer has had one too many:

• Green Light – normal or near normal
  • Sociable
  • Relaxed
  • Happy
• Yellow Light – exhibits effect of alcohol
  • Reduced inhibitions
  • Impaired judgment
  • Talking or laughing loudly
  • Being overly friendly
  • Arguing or baiting
  • Use of foul language
  • Increasing alcohol use
  • Careless with money
  • Possible smell of alcohol
• Red Light – appearance of intoxication
  • Moving in slow motion
  • Need time to respond
  • Glassy-eyed
  • Losing train of thought
  • Irrational statements
  • Spilling drinks
  • Walking awkwardly
  • Stumbling or falling
  • Unable to sit upright
  • Slurred speech
  • Possible smell of alcohol

The object is to prevent “red light” passengers from ever stepping onto an aircraft, and if it happens, get them off as soon as possible.

> Read More: How Flight Attendants Determine If You Are Too Intoxicated To Fly

United says, “The huddle must take place on the aircraft to ensure flight attendant minimums are maintained, and to the extent possible, out of earshot of any customers.”

United reminds employees that federal regulation (14 CFR §121.575) states that “we may not allow any person to board an aircraft if that person appears to be intoxicated. Failure to comply with that regulation can lead to regulatory enforcement action. Airport Operations has the responsibility to prevent a customer that appears to be intoxicated from boarding.”

That makes the warm greetings and small talk during boarding all the more important.

Here’s why this matters: the “huddle process” not only protects other passengers but prevents one flight attendant from “power-tripping” in a way that could backfire greatly (in our era of mobile phone cameras and viral social media posts). By requiring collaboration and agreement, customer rights are also protected.

CONCLUSION

I realize this story is a little bit of inside baseball, but this was shared with me from employees in multiple departments, so it appears this memo has made its way around the company. And that’s a good thing. United has greatly improved its wine and Champagne quality onboard this year and also introduced cocktails onboard…that creates additional temptation for passengers who may have already consumed too much before boarding. Checking passengers carefully while boarding or at least before the flight pushes back is a smart move.

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