American Airlines suspends alcohol service for flights to, from DC-area after Capitol riot

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An American Airlines plane is pictured in a file image taken March 19, 2020. (Photo by Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

DALLAS - American Airlines has temporarily suspended all alcohol service on flights to and from the Washington D.C.-area following Wednesday’s Capitol riot.

Due to COVID-19, American had not been serving alcohol in its main cabin, but the airline decided to stop all alcohol service until Thursday night for all flights to and from the D.C.-area.

The airline also increased staffing at airports near the nation’s capital.

"At American, safety is our highest priority. We are working closely with local law enforcement and airport authority partners to ensure the safety of our customers and team members on the ground and in the air. We also have increased staffing at Washington D.C.-area airports and will not serve alcohol on flights to and from this area as a precautionary measure. We will continue to enforce policies that ensure our customers’ and team members’ safety and wellbeing," an airline spokesperson said in a statement.

This comes after the Association of Professional Flight Attendants made note of "incidents on various flights headed to Washington, D.C." in which "flight attendants were forced to confront passengers exhibiting politically motivated aggression towards other passengers and crew."

The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA also pointed out the "mob mentality behavior" that happened on several flights to D.C. on Wednesday.

The AFA-CWA also said their actions at the Capitol should "disqualify" them from "the freedom of flight."