United Airlines, by some rankings the world’s biggest airline, has revised its contract of carriage to require passengers to use headphones when listening to a device, CBS News reports.

Passengers “who fail to use headphones while listening to audio or video content” can be “[refused] transport on a permanent or temporary basis”, it now states.

United is believed to be the first US-based headline to adopt a harsh stance against playing music or videos out loud – a breach of etiquette which is becoming more common on public transport.

Scott Keyes, a travel expert, told CBS: “This [new policy] is in line with how the vast majority of travellers comport themselves and would like others to comport themselves.

“It’s usually only a small number of folks on airplanes who are making noise by not using headphones, so this is a graceful way to handle those folks.”