Travellers heading off on more than 32,000 flights from UK airports over the bank holiday are being warned that drunken and abusive behaviour is “totally unacceptable”.
Offenders can face a sentence of up to five years in jail.
New Civil Aviation Authority data shows that even before the busy summer flying season began, the regulator had received more than 200 incident reports about disruptive passengers from UK airlines.
The government-backed ‘One Too Many’ campaign also called on passengers to fly responsibly this busy bank holiday weekend or risk being grounded.
Participating airports include Manchester Airport Group, AGS Airports, Bristol, Birmingham, Newcastle and Gatwick.
CAA director Richard Stephenson said: “The aviation industry will be working hard this weekend helping everyone going on holiday to have a trouble-free journey.
“We therefore call on all passengers to act responsibly as drunken and abusive behaviour is totally unacceptable.
“Not only does it cause distress to fellow travellers, but it can jeopardise flight safety.
“Passengers need to know they will face the full weight of the law should they be found guilty of disorderly behaviour.”
Passengers planning to fly during the August bank holiday weekend are also being urged to allow sufficient time to get to the airport.
The CAA warned of congested roads a rail route closures due to engineering works.
Abta today estimated that 2.2 million people are set to travel overseas during the bank holiday weekend.
Hundreds of thousands will fly out from Heathrow, 308,000 from Gatwick, 192,000 from Stansted and 108,000 from Luton.
Regional airports will also be busy with 220,000 departing from Manchester, 58,000 from Bristol, 98,000 from Edinburgh, 77,000 from East Midlands and 13,000 from Southend.
Hundreds of thousands will also be travelling through ports and the Channel Tunnel.
Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “The August bank holiday is one of the busiest of the year as we near the end of the summer and the school holidays.
“Temperatures around the Mediterranean are no longer at the record-breaking temperatures we saw last month and sunshine is virtually guaranteed.
“Many people will also be making the most of what the UK has to offer, taking weekends away or longer holidays to our coasts and countryside.
“As always at busy times of year for travel, if you are driving leave a little extra time to get to your place of departure and if using public transport check in advance for engineering works.”