Here's how many passenger disturbances have happened at major Scottish airports, including Edinburgh, Glasgow

Statistics, released by Police Scotland under Freedom of Information, have shown the number of recorded disruptive passenger incidents at four major Scottish airports, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Prestwick.

Data has been provided about the total number of disruptive passenger incidents and the number that happened on an aircraft, as well as the number of these incidents where alcohol was named as the primary cause.

Disruptive passenger incidents

Across the four major airports, a total of 755 disruptive airline passenger incidents were recorded by police last year, compared to 604 in 2023, 471 in 2022 and 438 in 2019.

Disruptive passenger incidents (which occurred on an aircraft)

Overall, only 20 incidents were recorded to have happened on an aircraft at these airports in 2019 compared to 104 in 2024.

In the first eight months of this year, there had been 69 passenger incidents on an aircraft - 39 in Edinburgh, 14 in Glasgow, nine in Aberdeen and seven in Prestwick.

However, it was noted that officers at Glasgow Airport were only recording data for the specific incident (“disruptive passenger”) from July 2019. Officers at Edinburgh Airport started recording the same incidents in that format from 2020, then Prestwick and Aberdeen started to collate the specific data from 2023.

Disruptive passenger incidents (where alcohol was identified as the primary cause)

Police attended 337 call-outs at Scotland's four major airports, where alcohol was listed as a 'primary cause' last year. This is compared with 308 call-outs in 2023, 185 in 2022, and 121 in 2019.

It was noted that, again, ‘disruptive passenger incidents’ started being recorded from differing years across the major airports, which means the data provided does not cover every incident from over the years.

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A Glasgow Prestwick Airport spokesperson said: "Airport staff work closely with Police Scotland officers based at the airport and airlines to ensure the safety and wellbeing of passengers, airline crew and airport staff.

“We raise awareness through the national One Too Many campaign, which warns passengers of the consequences of disruptive behaviour."