Misbehaviour on the Plane, What is ok, what is not?

Jo, Some of the comments were indeed very funny! This survey was a reminder of how annoying it can be at times to be stuck on the "flying Bus" for 10-hours at a time. I usually ask for an aisle seat, so thankfully don't have to climb over anyone. Thanks for posting.

They were somewhat amusing! The only time I pull on someone's headrest is when it's in my lap and I need to get up and use the restroom. In today's plane configurations, seats should either not recline at all or at a very slight angle. There's no knee room as it is.

I thought this was funny, too. I love the term, "feral children" lol. But for every parent who lets their "feral child" run amok, there's another parent who's a control freak who nags their poor kid to death. I don't know how many times I've been stuck in front of a parent who spends the whole trip, "stop that, quit it, I said stop, if you do that one more time......" when in fact I wouldn't have realized there was a kid in the first place if it weren't for the constant nattering of the parent. I want to lean over the seat and say, "your kid isn't bothering a soul, but YOU are driving everyone in earshot insane."

Thanks for the chuckles, Jo. I am not going to respond further, because I will just start ranting. I HATE FLYING. That's all, folks.

Funny. How about today's news of a guy on a LAX to SLC flight on Southwest who decided "you may now use your electronic devices" meant it was his own passenger right to light up his electronic cigarette. He later threw peanuts and other crap at the FAs when they told him to stop smoking. He was arrested and charged with a federal crime...idiot.

Cute!!!

As someone who flies frequently, I can readily identify with those results. I took my first flight in 1946 and have been flying ever since. An added thought: Smoking use to be allowed anywhere in the airplane. Then all the smokers were moved to the back of the plane. Then smoking was banned from the plane. Now it is proposed to put all the children under a certain age in the back of the plane so that they and their parents can experience the effect. And next would be, what?

Jo, It must be an airline rule that it's compulsory on every flight to have a baby that screams for the greater duration of the flight. Union rules or something???? That seems to have been the case with just about every trans-continental flight I've taken lately. Thank goodness for active noise cancelling headphones!

Ken, the screaming baby is not there per union rules. But the union rules do require having the 5-year old behind your seat who kicks your seat back the entire way (the 5-year old comes with oblivious parents, they avoid your glares no matter what).

Kent, Funny you should mention that, as I have been subjected to "kidney battering" from spoiled kids sitting behind me. It's @#$% annoying! As you say, the parents are usually oblivious. I'm getting very tired of that type of behaviour, so next time it happens I may register a strong complaint with the Flight Attendants and insist on being moved to another seat. I shouldn't have to put up with that for 9 - 10 hours! Cheers!

Michael,,electronic cigarettes do not release smoke,, so what was the other passengers problem,, ignorance?Such a shame people complain about anything.

Screaming babies on the plane - the bane of my travel existence. Until I had one of my own. Then I figured we are all allotted two years of forbearance in return for tolerating the children of others the rest of the time.

Okay, here's the thing I don't get with screaming babies. I have been made to understand that they scream mainly because they are in great PAIN in their sensitive little ears from the altitude/pressure changes and of course they don't know how to yawn to adjust, so sometimes they are in great discomfort for much or all of a flight even though takeoff and landing are the main screaming times. So why do parents, who would take extreme measures if anyone else inflicted minimal pain on their tiny bundle of joy, subject him/her to such agony for the sake of their own pleasure jaunt? Just askin'

@ ed, It's not only weight that can be a problem. On a previous flight to Europe, the woman in the next seat bitched incessantly about me "intruding" in her space. The problem wasn't weight on that occasion, but the width of my shoulders and the fact I had nowhere else to put my arm except on the armrest. A diet wouldn't change that problem in the least. If I could afford to pay for a First / Business Class seat, I would! I'd like to experience a nice flight in one of the fancy "Pods" (which Air Canada uses) at least once in my life, but unfortunately I'm on a Pension now so will have to settle for "Sardine class". Perhaps I'll win the Lottery and will be able to afford a "splurge" one of these days. Cheers!

There's a lot of judgement in that post. Careful where you tread. ANY book/posting/website on taking small children on planes will tell you to bring something for them to drink to help their ears. I assume it's common knowledge. Sometimes babies and small kids just cry. When my son was little, he never slept without a fight. We'd just warn everyone around us, comfort him as much as possible, and in 5-10 minutes the little dude was out. I don't think people here have an issue with crying children so much, it's the seemingly uninterested parents that irk you to death. I've seen crying babies sitting with parents AND grandparents who seem oblivious to the whole situation. My feelings are, in a confined space with a bunch of people around, you've got to do whatever you have to do to keep the peace. It's a heck of a lot of work (and I'm SO grateful that my little ones are a bit older now), but it's just the considerate thing to do.

I agree with Maureen. Sometimes they just cry at home, too. A very active 10 month old may want to get down and crawl around, or a 18 month old may want to run, and be frustrated that he's not allowed. The question is-would everyone give up another inch of space so that there could be a ball pit in the back to keep the little buggers happy?

Okay, admit it, there's plenty of you grown-ups out there who wish you could throw a full-blown tantrum on the plane, too. After one very frustrating stand-by experience, in which we had to give up and go home at the end of the day, my (then much younger) son laid down on the floor at the gate and cried when we told him, yet again, he was not getting on that plane. A man in a suit stood looking at him. I'm sure he felt the daggers coming from my eyes, double-dog daring him to say anything. 'Cos, man, if I could have gotten away with having a tantrum, too, I'd be right down there on the floor with him.

Pat: It doesn't matter if the electronic cigarette device emits smoke or not. It's a banned item, and the guy kept putting it away but then kept taking it back out and using it against the FAs orders. Guns, gel shoe inserts, hammers, and some explosive devices don't emit smoke either (until they explode), but they're all still banned. And it has nothing to do with passengers complaining. The passenger in question interfered with a flight crew, which is a federal offense. He threw stuff at the FAs and cockpit door and jumped up out of his seat on approach to SLC. He was warned many times, so the FBI was waiting when the plane landed. Anyway, he can explain it all during his federal proceeding and will have all the time in the world to smoke his electronic cigarettes in Leavenworth.

Doesn't have my number one complaint. People who are too large for their seat. Nothing makes a flight more miserable than being seated next to someone who can't fit in their seat. If you are two large to fit in a coach seat pay for first class, stay home or go on a diet. Expecting me to leave the arm rest up and have you flop onto my seat is unacceptable. I paid for a seat and I am entitled to the whole damn seat.

You could have your shoulders surgically reduced. :) I remember 3 college-age guys years ago who flirted with the gate agent and got bumped up to first class on a BA flight from ORD to LHR. They called their buddies to tell them about it and were celebrating loudly in the gate waiting area as we walked up. Literally, they were jumping up and down. Anyway, I distinctly remember thinking "those bastards" as we walked past the first class pods and took our sardine seats in economy (oh, excuse me in World Traveler) class.

Nobody actually requests to sit bitch, so give the poor sap a break Ansbach James, did something get lost in translation?

We just got back from Spain a couple of weeks ago. My wife had a bad case of "kidney battering"...so bad that she stood up. and loudly told the lady behind us to control her daughter, who must of been practicing for the local soccer team. The problem was "solved "when mother and daughter switched seats, and I became the victim. Oh well; we had a great time...... in Spain, so I had a big smile on my face,(even though Delta missed our connecting flight, and we had to wait two hours for our final "leg".)

On a recent flight between Hawaii and Seattle (a 5 1/2 hour flight) I was seated in the window seat of a two seat configuration when a young woman approached and took the other (isle) seat. She honestly weighted at least 300 pounds.
The saving grace was that it was an emergency exit row so she could stretch out forward as there were no seats in front of us. I fly that route often by myself and have for 25 years and yet that flight was one of the most enjoyable conversations I have every had. My initial horror resulted in absolute pleasure. You just never know.

Speaking of feral children and parents who don't care ... on a flight from LHR to Dulles, I had a mom and two children (about 5 and 7) in front of me, and dad was across the aisle. Shortly after taking off, mom told the kids that after the seat belt sign went off they could "frolic." I had never actually heard that word used and thought it sounded kind of cute and quaint. Well, it wasn't. As soon as the seat belt sign went off, they took off their shoes and socks and spent the next few hours running up and down the aisles, climbing on top of their seats, even trying to walk from arm rest to arm rest, straddling the aisle! The few moments they were seated they would ring the bell for the flight attendant, and then spill their soft drinks. Dad drank himself into oblivion on the trip and Mom ignored them. Eventually, just as the plane started descending to Dulles, they finally fell asleep. To this day, I cannot hear the word "frolic" without shuddering.

Many years ago I was on a flight home from Jamaica. A woman sat in the seat in front of me, reclined her seat as far as it would go, flipped her long and frizzy hair over the headrest into my lap and slept like that the whole flight. She wasn't asked to get upright for takeoff or landing, and when I asked the FA if they could wake her up so that I could eat my "meal" without her hair in it they said "no, she's a very important guest we will not interrupt her sleep". We were in economy! How important could she be? On the other hand I flew to Vancouver with a friend in our last year of University and on the way there she got the middle seat next to a very large smelly guy. My turn in the middle seat on the way home got me a gorgeous young med student going home to Ontario to see his family.

Jo, thanks for posting this; it's a fun read! I've never tried this, but my mother's advice re kids kicking the seat in front of them is to suggest to the parent that the kid take off his/her shoes... it's got to be less fun to kick a seat when your own toes are getting scrunched. I'd be interested if anyone else has tried this .

The thing that should change is airplane and airplane seat design. There should be no more than 2 seats in a "section" and they should be of a comfortable design and have adequate space for movement/leg length, people of at least slightly larger than "normal" size, etc. Even bus seats have a coplaseable leg rest- why can't airplanes... that's just one thing.... I am very, very short. Some airline seats do not allow me to put my feet on the floor- even when I scootch up so my knees actually align with the edge of the seat. Mostly, I feel like a little kid in church, with my legs sticking out in front of me or dangling in mid air. I do my best not to interfere with those who have climb over me, but it is not always easy. I am also a bit overweight. I work hard to loose weight, I exersice, follow a reasonable diet and still have weight problems. I CAN NOT always fly 1st or business class. Ed, I TOO pay full price for my seat. We are BOTH entitled to our seats. I will do my best not to interfere with your rights- so please don't presume to to tell me how to live my life.
I don't mean to rant- really I don't. But the intolerance and the assumptions that everyone can control their weight is one of my pet peeves. Sorry- I don't want to offend anyone, and really don't want to be negative, but I felt that I needed to express my views.

@ Nigel: 'Riding bitch' is Yank slang for sitting in the most undesirable seat, i.e. middle seat. When one is in the car, 'riding bitch' means sitting in the back by yourself. If you tire of PTS Report cover sheet discussions with your colleagues on a two hour drive then 'calling bitch' is a good thing. I'm sure others refer to whatever seat I am occupying as 'riding bitch'...:) I wouldn't be surprised if it's used in Manchester now as it was a theme at a meeting after work in Italy:) My 2 cents: No kids/babies in business class! I get these tickets maybe once a year or two with sky miles. I hate spending 100K miles to sit in a daycare that serves wine. In coach, I don't care. I assume it's the same crowd I'm seeing at an amusement park.

Once on a flight from Heathrow, the plane had just taken off and the man in front of me put his seat down all the way. It literally came into my lap. He paid no attention. I called the flight attendant, and she looked and said the seat was broken, the flight had already taken off, so nothing could be done. My husband called a different flight attendance who told the man that he would not be able to recline during the flight since the seat was broken - thank goodness he had no problem with it. (Plus, he smelled terrible!)

IMO, the issue with those that are girth-challenged isn't the person but the fact that they can and do spill over into your seat. I was once on a long Southwest flight to CA with a bunch of football coaches going to a convention in Las Vegas...stuck in "bitch" as James says in between two very, very large coaches (not large as in football playing shape but large as in unbelievably obese). Neither arm rest would go down. Talk about uncomfortable! The flight was packed full, but that's a good example of when SW should have asked those guys to pay for two seats each and forced them on the next flight out. I realize being fit and svelte places many in the minority in this country, but when you pay for a full seat just like the size-challenged (learned this new term from this board), you should get a full seat and not a quarter or half seat. I want to make it clear that I have no issues with obese people at all...just want my full seat on a plane. I think that was Ed's point.

Micheal that is exactly my point. If I pay for a seat, I expect the whole seat. Not an inch less because another person is larger than the seat next to me.

What is starting to bug me most with the shrinking personal space in sardine class, is how difficult it is now to even meet #4 and #6, with the needs of #8. With the reclined seats and armrests, even in an aisle seat it's become a contortionist act to get out and up from one's seat. Even worse, trying to get out without having to pull on/ or push onto/ the seat in front of you! On a recent flight, the back-of-the-seat pouch had been removed, without even improving the seat pitch situation. I ended up with also having to avoid stepping on all the junk that the person next to me had placed on the floor.

On the issue of screaming children, I watched an interesting report on the news last night. The main focus of the story was the fact that some restaurants have started to ban children under six years of age. This resulted after numerous complaints from "older" patrons who said that their dinners were ruined by screaming kids, and they threatened to stop dining in these establishments. However, there was an interesting footnote at the end of the story regarding one airline (Malaysian is the first, but others are considering similar policies) that now bans children from the First Class section. Again, this policy resulted as a result of complaints. Here's one link on the subject... www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43718876/ns/business-small_business/t/restaurant-says-it-has-heard-enough-bans-kids/

nothing is worse than being motion/air sick and then having the guy next to you (who has bad BO) pull out an onion sub sandwich and dine the night away. Why I didn't throw up is a christmas miracle but I made my boyfriend switch places with me to lessen the blow.

I hate people who give parents with crying babies dirty looks,, do the morons think the parents LIKE their babies crying either.. I try and help out if I can,, some people are just so frigging self centered and mean. I hate that the seats are so close together that for many mobility challenged/ elderly adults they HAVE to hold on to seat in front of them to edge their way out of their seat to go to the bathroom. I hate that the air is so stuffy in the plane ,, feels so dirty and of a poor quality,, airlines cut corners there I know. I have no issue with people who fully recline( unless seat is broken I suppose) as long as they put it up at meal time,, sitting straight up for 10-12 hours is insane, I just put my seat back and relax when the people in front of me do.. I wish people complained less about travel and though more about the people who would love to be able to have travel as a pastime to complain about.. but are worried more about food and bills ,, you know,, get over it,, we are all pretty lucky. That said, I do resent airlines cramming us in so that we all end up turning on each other like animals calling each other fat and smelly under our breaths.

Pat- Amen and Amen! As I said- the problem is with the airlines and the airplane designers. I'd pay a reasonable fare to have a reasonable "ride".

I once told a child who was kicking my friend's seat (and vibrating mine a lot) that she had to stop because that WAS my friend's seat. She kicked a few more times, grandma saw the dirty looks and moved her. I've had good luck asking flight attendants for help so do that if needed. ANd isn't it a law that the armrests have to go down? I think if someone so heavy were sitting next to me and the armrest didn't go down, I'd be letting the FA know.

"I wish people complained less about travel..." When I flew to Amsterdam last may on KLM our flight was delayed for 7 hours, while we sat in the security area, and waited...and waited....the delay threw all my on-going plans and reservations off, and when I finally got to my final destination, I hadn't slept or eaten real food for at least 36 hours. But still, all the delayed passengers began HELPING each other, going for food, watching their bags, etc., and what could've been a horrible and uncomfortable situation was made alittle less so, because there was simply no point in wasting time and energy getting mad or upset. We all know how miserable modern travel can be, with screaming babies, overweight seatmates, intrusive security, but what's the alternative??? Stay home, don't go anywhere? No thanks!! I grin and bear it:)

I had a long flight that was ruined once, by two passengers sitting behind me who conversed the entire 5 hours in a language that would make a gangster blush. Half the sentences were peppered with fck, btch, etc. They weren't real loud, they just happened to be right behind me. I finally peered over my seat and said "do you guys mind watching the language a bit, it's distracting me from enjoying my book." They apologized and it lasted about 20 minutes, before they resumed the conversation in their former style of expression. I found the headset and listened to the control tower instead! Thankfully there were no little kids around.