• Ryanair wants authorities to restrict alcohol sales in airports to two drinks per passenger.
• The airline said a diversion caused by a drunk passenger cost it over $15,000.
• It says some passengers are drinking too much particularly when flights are delayed.

Ryanair, the world's third-largest airline by passengers, is calling on authorities to limit the sale of alcoholic beverages at airports.

The Irish airline wants airports to restrict the sale of alcohol in departure areas to two drinks per passenger in a bid to limit the number of incidents involving rowdy, intoxicated passengers.

Ryanair said in a statement Monday that some people consume excessive amounts of alcohol in airport bars particularly when flights are delayed.

"We fail to understand why passengers at airports are not limited to 2 alcoholic drinks (using their boarding pass in exactly the same way they limit duty free sales), as this would result in safer and better passenger behaviour on board aircraft, and a safer travel experience for passengers and crews all over Europe," Ryanair said.

The airline included the statement in a press release giving more details about a civil lawsuit it recently announced it was pursuing against a former passenger.

It says the passenger was so disruptive on an April 2024 flight from Dublin to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands that the flight was diverted to Porto, Portugal, where the passenger was arrested.

It's pursuing the civil suit to recover costs over the incident, which the airline says totaled more than $15,000.

In the statement Monday, it gave a more detailed breakdown of the costs it said it faced, saying that as a result of the disruption and regulations on staff working hours, the airline had to fund accommodations and meals for six crew members and 160 passengers to spend the night in Porto. It said it also provided an additional aircraft and crew to operate the return flight from Lanzarote to Dublin, which was also delayed.

The airline says overall costs came to 15,350 euros, or nearly $15,750 at today's exchange rate, including 7,000 euros on passenger and crew overnight accommodation, 2,500 euros on landing and handling fees at Porto Airport, and 2,500 euros on Portuguese legal fees to date.

"None of these costs would have been incurred if this disruptive passenger had not forced a diversion to Porto in order to protect the safety of the aircraft, 160 passengers and 6 crew members on board," a spokesperson from the European budget airlines said.