Over the past few years that I’ve traveled while writing this blog, I’ve been much more observant of everything going on around me on every flight.  My recent flight between Dallas and Chicago was the breaking point for me when it comes to travelers and I offer this with as much good spirit as I can muster.  I urge any of you readers to either share the link for this post or print it out and share it with those you know to travel with any frequency.

First up:  Business Travelers

Business Travelers are one of the biggest problems I’ve observed.  Sorry folks but you, as a group, are a terrible bunch of people when it comes to traveling.  You carry far too much onto airplanes, invade other passenger’s personal space and act far too vain about your position as a frequent flier.   I witnessed men and women in business suits denigrating people who got relegated to the back of the aircraft  on one recent flight.  Openly insulting people is not only rude and inappropriate, it’s vain. 

You’ve got to learn to check your baggage more often.  Just because you got a Tumi rollaboard that the salesman said was for overhead bins doesn’t mean it is for overhead bins.  Quick history lesson:  Overhead bins were never intended to hold massive amounts of heavy luggage.  In fact, they originally didn’t even have doors on them.  They were created for women’s purses, hats, coats and briefcases.  They were not created for a grossly overpacked and oversized piece of luggage. 

You must pack more modestly and check your bags.  I would agree that if you are making 3 connections to get to a destination that carrying your luggage might be smart.  However, if you’re going point to point or traveling on airline with a good reputation with baggage handling, you need to check your bag(s).   Worried about your possessions?  So am I and that is why you can buy TSA approved locks.  I own 4 and I use them every time and I’ve not yet experienced a loss.   It isn’t necessary to leave your luggage unsecured.

You need to be more observant of the personal space that exists around you.  I saw a number of people open large 17″ laptops on my last flight and proceed to stick their elbows in people’s sides while trying to tweak their latest Power Point presentation.  Just because you have work to do doesn’t mean you get to violate another person’s space.  You also need to be more aware of how you’re dragging your coat, briefcase and rollaboard onto the plane with you.  Again, on my last flight, I had to tell two different men that they were using their briefcases as weapons after they banged them into my head.  Be situationally aware at all times when you’re going down that aisle.

Businessmen:  Quit chatting up the flight attendants.  I don’t care if you’re lonely and I don’t care if you’re single.  You’re holding them up from serving other people.

Businesswomen:  I know you like to look good and feel good.  Stop putting on so much perfume that you offend those sitting in close proximity to you.  Frankly, traveling with perfume on is just a bad idea. 

Everyone:

Find an airline that offers inexpensive and/or free baggage checking and use it.  The truth is, airlines very rarely lose baggage for anyone and even the worst offenders are literally an order of magnitude better than they were a generation ago.  You’re troubling yourself and your passengers for a risk that has a less than 1% chance of happening on any one flight you take. 

Fly the airlines that work for you and stop chasing the frequent flier points.  Traveling with an extra connection is silly, time consuming and wasteful to both you and your employer.  Get as direct a flight as you can for the least money possible.

Pay attention to changes at airlines.  Some that were pretty bad 10 years ago are dramatically improved.  I recently convinced someone to try US Air again and then were stunned at both the service, price and care shown towards passengers.  Just because you had a bad experience 5 years ago doesn’t mean you’ll have another today.  They two events are entirely unconnected.

Eat some food.  Seriously, eat a good meal before departing on your flight.  Why?  Because you’ll be less prone to feel annoyed and aggravated at inconveniences, you’ll rest easier on the flight and you’ll find your ability to cope with sudden events beyond your control much improved.  Eat a good, healthy meal before you get on that airplane.

Plan your day around your flight.  Allow time for being flexibile and quit expecting ideal circumstances at every airport.  Ideal circumstances are not the norm, they’re the extraordinary.  Delays, weather, congestion, etc are the norm.  Get used to that ide and start building time into your day around your flight.  Stop planning a meeting 2 hours before your departure or one hour after your arrival.  It’s silly and impratical to expect that you have a real chance  to make it.  

Refresh yourself on what it means to be polite and exercise courtesy with both the flight crews as well as your passengers.  I’m not saying you have to be a doormat but you can learn to pause to let someone by you and you can stop acting exasperated because someone needs to get up and use a restroom.  Civility and courtesy can and will make your travel a better overall experience.   I want to point out that the rudest people I’ve witnessed are the so called and very apparent frequent fliers. 

All of you need to figure out that airplanes are quite possibly the worst place to expect to get any work done.  Stop thinking that it is your opportunity to “catch up” and do work.  Think about this:  Even on a domestic first class flight you’re expecting to be productive and be at your best game working in a personal space area measuring about 20″ x 38″ with well over a hundred people within no more than 100 feet of you.  This is not anything close to a good situation for getting work done. 

PAY ATTENTION TO THE FLIGHT ATTENDANTS!!!  I watched a Southwest Flight attendant request a woman terminate her phone call while she briefed people on safety who were sitting in the exit aisle row of the aircraft.  She actually had 2 very important key points to make and this softheaded woman continued her call ignoring the flight attendant who then had to stop, get her (the passenger) attention and listen to her briefing *again*.  This delayed the flight attendant and annoyed a number of people who were around her trying to just get done with it.

Quite making phone calls before takeoff and as soon as you land.  I’m pretty sure that I and the other passengers don’t want to share in your conversation with your wife, mistress, colleague or buddy.  It’s a crowded airplane and we don’t need to hear about your kids, your problems or your work.  We most particularly don’t need to hear you speaking louder and louder because you have 150 people around you.  Stop it.  Nothing is going to change if you wait until you’re off the aircraft to make your call.  You’re being a jackass if you keep it up.

When they tell you to turn off your electronic items, turn them off.  Don’t put them into “airplane mode” or “game mode” or anything else.  Turn them off.  There is a real and valid reason for this and, yes, they really can intefere with aircraft systems during those critical times they ask you to turn them off.  In addition, when you argue with the flight attendant about “airplane mode”, you’re delaying the flight attendant, potentially the flight, breaking airline rules and showing your ignorance about aircraft systems.  In short:  you’re being a jackass.

I mean all of this.  It’s time to be civil and polite people and stop being vain, selfish and overbearing.  Frequent flier status doesn’t make you a superior being.  It makes you a frequent flier who has had more time than most to unlearn appropriate behaviour.  If your an infrequent flier, take a few minutes and use Google to learn about the airports you’ll be passing through and be smart about your packing and the security requirements.  Waiting until you’re about to put your bags through security to learn about the security requirements is bad planning and inconsiderate to the 4 dozen other people behind you in the line. 

It’s time for everyone to tune up their behaviour when traveling.

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