Chances are, we’ve all been there: You find your seat on the airplane, get as cozy as you can, and put your headphones on — only to be met with a sound overpowering whatever it is you’re listening to. That’s right — someone is listening to something OUT LOUD on the airplane.
It looks like that exact act — listening to something out loud — might be banned on one major airline soon. United Airlines recently updated its policy to potentially ban passengers who play audio or video without headphones.
On February 27th, United Airlines made a change to its contract of carriage, which includes the legally binding terms passengers agree to when purchasing a ticket on their flights. The changes revealed an addition to rule 21, the section on “refusal of transport.”
The airline writes in this section that it has the “right to refuse transport on a permanent or temporary basis or…remove [passengers] from the aircraft at any point” for several reasons, which now includes “passengers who fail to use headphones while listening to audio or video content.” We don’t know about you, but that sounds like a rule we can get behind!
The policy goes on to outline that any passenger who engages in the act and causes any “loss, damage, or expense of any kind” to the airlines is responsible for reimbursing the company for these losses.
The rule is added to 21 other regulations in the refusal of transport section. There are additional removable offenses, including passengers who are barefoot or improperly clothed, and passengers who refuse to end voice or video calls when the airplane doors have closed.
If passengers forget their headphones, the airline offers a free, basic wired pair, according to United’s in-flight entertainment page on their website.
This change makes United the first major carrier in the U.S. to officially make a legally binding rule about headphone use on airplanes, though other carriers might still instruct passengers to turn off their volume.
As far as other airlines go, Delta advises its passengers to “please use earbuds or headphones with any personal electronic device” for “the comfort of everyone around you.”
Southwest says, “headphones are required whenever a passenger is listening to any audio,” but it is not legally binding in their contract of carriage.
We’ll be on the lookout for more updates from United Airlines and beyond. In the meantime, stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog for the latest Disney news and more!
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What do you think of this potential United Airlines change? Let us know in the comments below.








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