Flight Attendants Reveal The Biggest Mistakes You Can Make Travelling This Summer

If you're flying off to a sunny vacation spot this summer the excitement is real, but in the heat of the moment travellers often make some errors in judgement on planes.

There are quite of lot of mistakes that people commonly make when flying that may not seem like a big deal to you, but flight attendants know the pain all too well.

Narcity spoke with a former and a current flight attendant, to see what some of the most common mistakes travellers make on planes are. Their answers ranged from the annoying, the gross and the outright dangerous.

So if you're jetting off anytime soon, make sure you avoid making these critical mistakes.

Not bringing enough food or drink

The current flight attendant, who spoke to Narcity, said one of the main things people tend to forget when flying is to come prepared with plenty of food and drink for the duration of the flight.

"Having a meal included in a flight is rare nowadays unless you are travelling overseas to places like Europe or Asia," they said.

If you're flying out somewhere, whether it's short haul or long, it's better to bring a ton of food with you just in case you don't get a meal and it's especially important if you have specific dietary restrictions.

"Not all menu offerings on board can accommodate specific needs," they explained

If you don't want to spend too much money buying bottled water at the airport, bringing a reusable bottle is a must (just make sure it's empty before heading through security to avoid any unexpected delays).

Handing your luggage to the flight attendant

If you're a notorious over-packer, this one is for you!

The former flight attendant told Narcity that it isn't the flight attendant's job to put your heavy luggage away for you, so don't just pass your bags to them expectantly.

"I had a lot of passengers complaining that their bags were too heavy for them to lift in and out of the overhead compartments. If you can't lift it, we probably can't either, and we're not going to risk injuring ourselves to put your bags away," they explained.

However, if a passenger isn't able to stow their bag for health reasons, flight attendants will be more than happy to help out.

"On the whole, be sure you can be accountable for stowing your belongings."

Using the washroom while the plane is boarding

It's always frustrating when your flight is delayed from taking off, but one way to keep things running as smoothly as possible is to avoid using the washroom while people are still boarding the plane.

"If the washrooms are at the back of the plane and you're not seated within two rows of that, you will have to stand there until boarding is complete as you can't get back up the single-aisle," the current flight attendant said.

Not only is it going to be painful for you, but you'll also be making your flight attendant's job way harder.

"You'll be blocking the flight attendants from trying to access the aisle while they are trying to help people get seated, and boarded quickly," they added.

Not following baggage rules

When you're packing an overhead bag, you might be tempted to risk taking a slightly oversized bag to avoid having to check your luggage. But if you're told you're going to have to check your bag, don't get mad at your flight attendant over it.

"There is a 'sizing device' and chart at every gate, and in the emails sent to you after you've booked your flight. If you think you've overpacked - chances are you have and your bag won't fit on the plane, and then it will need to be checked," the current flight attendant said.

Many airlines give you the option to bring one smaller personal item such as a backpack, purse or laptop bag that fits under the seat and a larger carry-on like a roller bag or duffel that can fit in the overhead bin.

If you just bring those and stick to that amount, there should be space for everyone's belongings, especially on a sold-out flight.

Not wearing a seatbelt during the flight

You might think that once the seatbelt light has turned off on the plane you're in the clear, but according to the former flight attendant, you might want to keep yourself strapped in any way.

"Turbulence can hit at any moment and you don't want to be scrambling to buckle up," they said.

Even if you're planning on getting some shut-eye, make sure your seatbelt is done up and visible so you don't get awkwardly woken up.

"Leaving your seatbelt on means that a flight attendant won't have to wake you up to make sure you're strapped in should the seatbelt sign come back on," they added.

Handing your garbage to the flight attendant

There's not much to do on a flight so with plenty of snacking to keep you occupied, you're like to accumulate quite a bit of trash while you're in the air, but whatever you do, don't just hand it to your flight attendant to deal with.

"I understand that you can accumulate a lot of garbage during a flight, but it's a big no-no to hand it to a flight attendant," the former flight attendant said.

"Many passengers tried to hand me garbage while I was serving food, which is very unsanitary. I also had someone try and hand me a dirty diaper between garbage services," they added.

Crew members will be coming around the cabin every once in a while to collect any trash and they'll have plastic bags and gloves to avoid getting covered in mess so wait until then before trying to palm your rubbish off on them.

Opening the overhead bin when the plane hasn't stopped

We get it! You've finally landed at your destination and you're keen to get yourself off that plane as soon as physically possible. However, standing up and opening the overhead bin before the plane stops is not only pointless but also pretty dangerous.

"It puts those around you in danger because, should the plane make a sudden stop, you could fall onto someone. It’s especially dangerous to open the overhead bin while the plane is taxiing," the former flight attendant said.

"I once had a passenger do this and it resulted in a heavy piece of luggage falling and hitting another passenger on the head when the plane made a sudden turn."

Standing up isn't going to get you off the plane any quicker so in future, just make sure you stay seated until the plane is fully stopped.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.