MOSCOW, February 8 - RAPSI. Airlines should be allowed to seize alcohol purchased by passengers in airport duty-free zones, Yury Gruzdev, the deputy head of the Interior Ministry's Transport Bureau, said on Friday.

Alcohol sales should also be limited in airport restaurants and cafes, Gruzdev said.

The official also argued against the idea of compiling passenger blacklists by Russia's airlines. He cited the United States as an example, noting that flight attendants do not sell alcohol to inebriated passengers.

Vitaly Yefimov, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma's Transport Committee, said a draft law banning alcohol on board may soon be prepared.

The initiative resulted from two incidents involving severely inebriated passengers - one plane was forced to land prematurely in Tashkent, while a flight attendant was injured on another plane during an altercation with a passenger.

State deputies have already proposed permitting airlines to seize alcohol purchased by passengers in duty-free zones. The draft may be introduced this spring, Deputy Speaker and United Russia party member Sergei Zheleznyak said.