RELATED: Never Wear This One Thing on a Plane, Flight Attendant Warns. It will be a while longer before you can kick back with a cocktail on some major airlines. In a memo sent to flight attendants on Sept. 10, Southwest Airlines said it would not be restarting the sale of alcoholic beverages on board its planes, USA Today reports. The company says that the recent decision by officials to extend the current federal mask mandate for all passengers on airplanes and in airports influenced the decision to further delay the return of drink service.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb Representatives with the company said it would likely keep the current freeze on alcohol sales in place for at least the rest of the year. “With the mask mandate being extended to January 18, 2022, there are no current plans to bring back alcohol prior to January 2022,” Randall Miller, senior manager of inflight ops, initiatives, and design for Southwest Airlines, said in the memo. This isn’t the first time that Southwest has extended its ban on the sale of alcohol. After announcing in May that the airline would resume serving in-flight beer, wine, and cocktails by late June, a violent attack from an unruly passenger that sent a flight attendant to the hospital led executives to postpone the return of boozy beverages. “Given the recent uptick in industry-wide incidents of passenger disruptions in-flight, we have made the decision to pause the previously announced restart of alcohol service onboard,” Southwest spokesman Chris Mainz said at the time. “We realize this decision may be disappointing for some customers, but we feel this is the right decision at this time in the interest of the safety and comfort of all customers and crew onboard.” RELATED: The CDC Says Don’t Go to These 2 Popular U.S. Destinations Right Now. Southwest isn’t the only major airline pushing back its ban on in-flight alcoholic beverages. On Aug. 19, American Airlines announced that it would be extending its own suspension of alcohol sales through Jan. 18. While travelers in first and business classes can still imbibe, the rules affect all passengers in the main cabin. Besides the extension of the federal mask mandate, the airline has also grappled with an increase in incidents involving disruptive passengers that in part prompted the company to hold off on bringing booze back. “We are doing all we can to help create a safe environment for our crew and customers onboard our aircraft,” American Airlines’ senior manager of flight service policies Stacy Frantz said in a recent note to staff, as obtained by Simple Flying. For more helpful travel news sent straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. Besides not being able to order your adult beverage of choice once wheels are up, you may begin to notice some changes next time you order your pre-flight Bloody Mary. Due to the unprecedented surge in incidents involving disorderly flyers, officials with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) sent a letter to the administrators of major airports across the U.S. in early August in an effort to stop establishments from allowing for “to-go” alcoholic beverages that travelers can carry around the terminal and potentially onto their flights. “As the number of passengers traveling has increased, so has the number of unruly and unsafe behavior incidents on planes and in airports,” FAA Administrator Steve Dickson wrote in the Aug. 3 letter. “The FAA adopted a Zero-Tolerance policy toward this behavior on airplanes earlier this year, and we are taking the strongest possible action within our legal authority. But we need your help.” RELATED: You’re Banned From Traveling Here Now, Even If You’re Vaccinated.
