A member of cabin crew has shared the one thing that you should never do when you’re flying on a plane, with many Brits admitting to using the unhygienic storage
A flight attendant has revealed the part of a plane that should be avoided at all costs.
CiCi in the Sky, who describes herself as a ‘sky ally’ and ‘travel alchemist’, boasts over 300,000 TikTok followers who turn to her for expert guidance on air travel. The aviation specialist recently revealed the dirtiest parts of the plane she’d recommend avoiding.
She strongly advises against using seat pockets, labelling them as “gross” due to the variety of items people shove into them. The cabin crew member then cautioned her audience to refrain from stowing their coats or other loose belongings in the overhead bins, again highlighting hygiene concerns.
“I mean I’ve never seen them cleaned and I’ve seen people’s stuff spill out of their bags and get all over people’s jackets, clothes or whatever so just don’t do it,” Cici said.
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A Reddit user going by the name HausofDarling issued a stark warning on the ‘Flight attendants of Reddit’ forum, advising passengers to steer clear of using the seat pocket on commercial jets. They cautioned: “I always recommend you never, ever, ever, ever use or put anything in the seat pocket. They are cleared of rubbish but are never ‘cleaned’.”
The flight attendant went on to describe the unsavoury items they’ve encountered in these pockets: “I have pulled out and seen all sorts being pulled out from there. Dirty tissues, sick bags, knickers, socks, gum, half sucked sweets, apple cores, and then next flight you go and put your phone, laptop or iPad in there.”
Another crew member, choosing to remain anonymous, corroborated these claims with their own grim discoveries, including: “I once discovered vomit outside of the paper bag which spilled through the seat pocket. It was absolutely awful, but what can you do?”.
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Despite such horrors, new research from AllClear Travel Insurance reveals that 7 in 10 (70%) travellers admit to unhygienic habits while flying Topping the list is storing personal items inside the seatback pocket (30%) – one of the most unhygienic parts of the plane – followed by resting your head on the tray table (19%) and using the toilet without shoes or in socks (13%)
AllClear also spoke to an ex-flight attendants about the horrors of the seat pocket. They said: “Sometimes dirty nappies and used sick bags would be left in seat pockets.”
Almost a third of travellers (29%) store their personal items and food in seatback pockets, but these areas are rarely cleaned. Where possible, travellers should try to store snacks in resealable containers and sanitise their hands if they use the pockets.