For some airline passengers, flying can be a daunting and stressful journey. For others, it’s a welcome experience to see the world from hundreds of feet high.
CTVNews.ca spoke with a Canadian flight attendant to find out what he wouldn’t advise passengers to do before and during flights.
Don’t go barefoot
Sean Price, a part-time flight attendant, says many people like to remove their shoes and socks once they’re in the airplane, commonly in the washroom. Price is also the academic program manager for the Flight Services program at Seneca Polytechnic in Toronto.
“Generally speaking, any substances you come in contact with in that lavatory are probably undesirable, and we tend to see those same feet reappear in the cabin sometimes on arm rests, sometimes on table trays,” Price, who has been a flight attendant for a major airline in Canada for 19 years, said in a video interview with CTVNews.ca. “So we would not recommend wearing bare feet in the lavatory specifically because there’s lots of opportunity for cross contamination there.”
Flight attendants will generally tidy up the washroom during a flight, but they don’t fully clean it until the aircraft lands, he noted. For long-haul flights, the plane would be deep-cleaned at the destination. Short-haul flights will generally be quick clean-ups, he added.
“You can imagine flights to maybe Vancouver to Sydney can take 16 hours,” Price said. “There’s lots of opportunity for substances to build up in that lavatory and then on your foot.”
Don’t change babies at your seat
Another common practice to avoid is changing babies’ diapers on the surface of seats.
Instead, use the washroom and use the bags to dispose of soiled material. “We have lots of baby change tables on the aircraft,” Price said. “We can assist you in any way possible. … but we would prefer that you go to the lavatory where there is a change table that’s safer for (the) baby and cleaner for anyone else who’s using that seat.”
Don’t use devices without headphones
Many people use their personal devices on flights to watch movies and shows and entertain themselves. The problem is when they don’t use headphones.
“You can imagine that on a red-eye flight when … you’re trying to gain some sleep,” he said. “If you’ve got 30 people watching a TV show at full volume in the cabin, it can get quite chaotic (and) disruptive.”
Passengers should always use a headset or headphones, even if they’re just receiving text messages or notifications, he said. “Those consistent notification tones can be really, really distracting in the cabin,” he said.
Don’t leave trash behind
If you have garbage, flight attendants would appreciate it if you give it to them during the flight.
“We do see a lot, after the flights deplaned, a lot of rows or seats that are pretty heavy with garbage or trash or other items,” Price said.
Flight attendants check for any refuse throughout the flight and do a quick cleanup after passengers exit to ensure there are no delays for the next flight. “We try to make sure that the aircraft is as clean as possible before landing because not only flight attendants but airline personnel are under immense pressure to turn that aircraft around super quickly when it gets to destination,” Price said.
The amount of time airplanes are on the ground is very short, he pointed out. “Which means the cleaner the aircraft is, the quicker we can clean it on the ground, the quicker we can get you off to the next destination.”
Don’t be impatient
Price reminds passengers that airplanes have limits. “We’re in a metal tube in the sky flying at enormous speeds around the world and that environment gives us quite a bit of limitation,” Price said.
Some aircraft may not have an entertainment system, or passengers may not be able to buy food during the flight, for instance.
“Sometimes even turbulence may prevent us from doing a full service,” Price said. “And in these circumstances, really, we’re just looking for patience because flight attendants are doing the best they can in the environments in which they work and with the limitations that they have.”
Don’t be unprepared
With these limitations in mind, Price recommends travellers bring non-liquid snacks and an empty water bottle. Water bottles full of water aren’t permitted, but most airports have refillable water systems, he notes.
“So make sure you fill up that water bottle on the plane just in case if turbulence is so severe that we’re not able to come out and give you a beverage,” Price said. “If you bring snacks on board, it’s just better preparing you so that if we aren’t able to come around or maybe the airline doesn’t offer the service you were expecting or maybe the flight isn’t long enough to offer you a snack, at least you’ve got some backup in your bag.”
Consider checking carry-on bags
Although baggage fees are high, in some cases, passengers can check in their bags for free at the gate or during boarding should the airline run out of overhead bin space.
Check your bag if you are offered the chance because smaller aircraft may have smaller bins for carry-on luggage, Price said.
“So bringing on a carry-on bag does seem to be the more economical solution. That being said, just remember that different aircraft are different sizes and this isn’t a one size fits all scenario,” he explained.
Passengers on long-haul flights may find their carry-on bags fit in the overhead bin, but once they’re on connecting aircraft, the bags may be too big.
“There tends to be a little bit of tension in the cabin when this happens,” Price said. “If it doesn’t fit in the bin, trust your flight attendant, they know what fits and they know what doesn’t. And they are masters at Tetris. I’m telling you, they will know how to get the bag in. If they can’t, listen to them and they will give you options, like checking your bag.”
Use a smaller carry-on bag, he recommends.
“You choosing the largest carry on you can find often is more of a headache than it’s worth,” he said. “A smaller carry-on that’s able to fit in more bins is going to be far better for you than a larger carry on that might not fit.”
Don’t pay last minute
Price says it’s more expensive to book a checked bag at the airport than purchasing it earlier.
“If you’re gonna do a checked bag, oftentimes booking your ticket and booking the checked bag at the same time is cheaper,” he said.
Purchasing tickets earlier is cheaper as well, he adds.
Don’t forget your sweater
Cabin temperatures may not suit various people, so it’s better to dress in layers, Price said.
Not all airlines offer blankets, he adds.
Emergency scenarios could happen even if you’re travelling to warmer destinations.
“If we were to land in Toronto and we had an emergency and we had to evacuate the aircraft, you’re going to evacuate the aircraft wearing flip flops and shorts and a tank top and it’s negative 25 in Toronto,” he said.
Like leg room? Avoid emergency exits
Seats near the emergency exit have lots of leg room but usually don’t recline, Price said.
“Remember that oftentimes an emergency exit seat won’t recline because we can’t have a seat that reclines into an emergency exit because it could prevent someone from evacuating,” he explained.
Don’t remove your seatbelt unless necessary
With the rise of incidents with turbulence, it’s safer to keep your seatbelt on at all times, unless you’re going to the washroom, Price said.
“Our pilots are really, really good at planning routes that avoid turbulence, but sometimes there’s turbulence that’s unexpected,” he said. “Always wear your seatbelt, you can loosen it up ….
“Limit the time that you’re walking around the cabin when you don’t have a seatbelt because it isn’t safe.”