If I recall correctly liquor licensing laws apply to airlines therefore they should be able to ban someone for drunk & disorderly behaviour just like any pub or club can if their staff have been physically threatened and/or assaulted.
Also IIRC, not quite (any F/As in the know, feel free to prove me wrong). Responsible Service of Alcohol applies, but the grog service is governed by one of the federal aviation acts. Airport bars are covered by the Airports Act, not the relevant state legislation.
This means that there is not the same provision as the state Liquor Acts provide for bouncing drunken FWits. I assume he was nabbed under the relevant disturbance to aviation legislation so it all ended up the same in the end. If the airlines got together and supported a ban then they could lobby the government, but we all know how likely that is.
Maybe commercial aircraft should have a brig
. I think he should be forced to walk everywhere from now on because I hate drunken bullies, but obviously the courts don't see threatening people on an airline as serious. If it's like anything else, some innocent staff member or pax will have to get badly hurt before that changes.
Personally I think that anyone proven to have made a threat against an aircraft should automatically be banned from air transport for twelve months, no matter how much they've drunk or how bad a hair day they're having. It seems that the airlines can't do it so the OTS should grow a collective pair for a change and do it for them.