Causes and consequences of air rage in Canada: cases in newspapers

To outline the causes and consequences of air rage, describe victims and perpetrators, suggest hypotheses for further study and compare road rage to air rage cases.

We analyzed 29 air rage cases reported in the Canadian Press for the time period 1998 to 2000.

It was found that excessive alcohol use and tobacco smoking were the most important precipitating factors. Physical aggression was common in air rage but serious injuries were not. The psychological stress of air rage for passengers must be considerable but it has not been assessed. Air rage and road rage are predominantly attributable to young males. However, alcohol and tobacco use are not important factors in road rage.

Preventing air rage will be difficult and will depend on better training for airline staff. More research is needed on air rage, especially the role of mental illness and prescription drug use. Prospective studies of air rage cases are needed.