Mixed Drinks on International Flights
 

If I don't want to buy the mixed drinks I assume are offered for sale on USAir international flights, can I bring my own? I enjoy a brandy liqueur that I'd be willing to bet they don't offer on the flight, and it's a guarantee to help me get drowsy and relax for the flight.

I believe it is illegal to bring your own alcohol on the flight.

Technically, it is against "regulations" to consume your onw alcoholic beverages on a flight. Why? supposedly so the airline can "control" the amount of alcohol consumed (and people do get sloshed on planes sometimes); the more cynical might add that it also bolsters ther airline's revenue by allowing them to charge you $4-5 bucks a drink when one of those minatures can be bought in a liquor store for usually less than$2 depending on the contents.

Do people bring and consume their own...all the time.

The last thing I want to do is get pie-eyed, but usually it only takes one drink before I'm nodding off. I'll have to think about what I'm going to do....

Thanks!

Pre 9/11, I used to always have handy a disposable corkscrew during my travels. On a couple of occasions, I popped open a bottle that I purchased at airports in Europe while on a trans-Atlantic flight home.

Post 9/11, in one occasion I requested a flight steward to open a wine bottle for me as my corkscrew were packed with the rest of my checked-in luggages.

I haven't done it since then, but somebody has yet to tell me during flight that it was illegal to consume your own alcohol in-flight.

Even though it is against regulations, if you're discreet it's unlikely to be a problem.

It's neither illegal nor against any government regulation:

<b>Federal Aviation Regulations
§ 121.575 Alcoholic beverages.

(a) No person may drink any alcoholic beverage aboard an aircraft unless the certificate holder operating the aircraft has served that beverage to him.</b>

Some carriers don't like to do it, but if I produce the FAR showing chapter and verse and present it to the flight attendant along with my calling card showing I am an attorney, I usually don't get any argument.

I am not an attorney, but the Certificate holder is the AIRLINE! So in that case all your legal document says is that you can't drink unless they serve you.

I assume you are just bluffing them and it works, but.... you would think you would know what a certificate holder is. Being able to buy booze doesn't make you one.

OK. I read the &quot;attorney&quot; position again.

IF you give the booze to the flight attendant and allow him/her to serve you that would probably work. (Good luck!)

Yes, my usage of the word &quot;carrier&quot; is interchangeable with &quot;certificate holder.&quot; &quot;Employee of the airline&quot; means the same thing.

No, I'm not bluffing. The word &quot;served&quot; does not mean the FA must <i>sell</i> it to you - the intent of the regulation, as intrepid1 indicated above, is so that the crew can control the dosage.

Just put it in a container of another sort (like an small ice tea bottle), no one's going to come sniffing your beverage.

This works nicely for vodka in lemonade, rum in fruit punch, and the like.

suze and marcy, I cannot recommend sneaking a drink from your supply. If some Nazi FA gets it in her head that you should be made an example of, you might find yourself being escorted off the flight by Federal agents.

I don't know whether European governments co-operate with the Feds on this (I doubt it), but I'm not going to be the one to test it. I always have the waitress pour for me.

You all realize, I'm sure, that it is attorneys who have made credit card rules, rental car agreements, etc. absolutely impossible to understand.

Hey, Robe, Baby..do get INTO the modern age...not all FA's are female..unless you fly on Hooters!

Yeah, but the guys are nowhere near as likely to make a federal case out of it. When I think &quot;Nazi FA&quot; it's never a man.

On our flight from FRA back to Denver last February an AA flight attendant busted a German woman who brought on her own beer and was drinking it.

Actually I always fly a European carrier (so free booze) for US to Europe trips.

It's been homebound from Mexico and Hawaii beach vacations where I needed to use up the leftovers from my hotel room stash that I've spiked my own beverages. And usually I drink them in the airport before boarding.

There, my secret's out.

So far, thankfully, I have not caused an international incident.

Aer Lingus is a European carrier and does not provide free booze on their flights. ((b))

Why not just bring miniatures? You certainly could open/pour a miniature w/o drawing any attention to yourself. You don't want to drink too much anyway - so a couple of miniatures should be more than enough.

Don't bring your own miniatures unless you plan to have a flight attendant pour them for you. Violating FARs - any of them - is taken very seriously nowadays.