US airline to boot passengers off flights for blasting music without headphones

The airline has updated its contract of carriage, meaning passengers must agree to the policy when purchasing a ticket.

A spokesman told the Washington Post: "We’ve always encouraged customers to use headphones when listening to audio content – and our Wi-Fi rules already remind customers to use headphones.

"It seemed like a good time to make that even clearer by adding it to the contract of carriage."

The airline had previously encouraged customers to wear headphones but has now gone a step further by formally adding the rule to its contract of carriage.

Breaching the contract can, in some cases, result in a passenger being banned from an airline for life.

It remains unclear whether this penalty would apply to passengers who break the headphone rules.

Other reasons a passenger could be removed from a flight include assaulting a member of staff, displaying lewd behaviour or refusing to provide proof of identity.

"UA shall have the right to refuse transport on a permanent or temporary basis or shall have the right to remove from the aircraft at any point," the agreement reads, before listing the reasons a passenger could be removed from a United flight.

In November, US Transport Secretary Sean Duffy urged passengers not to wear pyjamas when flying.

He said passengers should dress "with some respect" and suggested travellers could wear "a pair of jeans and a decent shirt".

Last year, Transport for London (TfL) launched a campaign encouraging passengers to listen to music using headphones while travelling.

Rolled out as part of the Travel Kind campaign, posters appeared on the Elizabeth line urging commuters not to disrupt others.

The Liberal Democrats have also pushed for tougher measures against people playing loud content on public transport.

At the time, Lisa Smart, the Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokeswoman, said: "Far too many people dread their daily commute because of the blight of anti-social behaviour - and headphone dodgers playing loud music on buses and trains are some of the worst offenders."

She added that people were too "intimidated" to speak up when someone else was blasting music.

The Lib Dems proposed fines of up to £1,000 for those engaging in anti-social behaviour.

The Conservative Party has also called for similar measures, proposing a ban on passengers who play loud music on buses.

Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden said those riding on the bus should not be forced to "endure somebody else's choice of c**p music".

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