5 things you should stop doing on airplanes, according to a flight attendant

Flying can be stressful for a lot of reasons, from sudden delays to sitting next to unruly passengers. But for flight attendants, whose job it is to deal with passengers and handle challenges that arise — from constant requests from customers to in-flight emergencies — it can be a job that requires extreme patience and a positive attitude.

Denise Kulhman has been a flight attendant for the past 38 years. Kuhlman, who currently works for Delta Air Lines, flies out of Los Angeles International Airport and often travels to the Hawaii Islands, Miami, Seattle, and Chicago.

Over the years, Kulhman has worked on hundreds of flights with thousands of passengers — and she has five clear pet peeves that she wishes passengers would pay attention to. Here’s a look at what this seasoned flight attendant hopes more customers will stop doing in order to have better etiquette while flying.

Ignoring flight attendants

For the most part, flight attendants and crew members leave passengers alone for the duration of the flight. However, there are a few key moments when they do communicate with passengers about important updates, like turbulence, seat-belt announcements, and during food and beverage service.

Kulhman says that quite often, passengers don’t take out their earbuds or headphones to hear flight attendants speak.

“Ignoring someone who’s trying to speak to you and serve you drinks or food can be rude,” Kulhman told Insider.

Instead, Kulhman says a good rule of etiquette is to simply remove one’s earbuds as a sign of respect. If passengers don’t want any food or drinks, it’s polite to verbally say no, Kulhman said.

Misusing overhead bin space

One of the biggest obstacles flight attendants face at the start of the flight is dealing with passengers storing their bags incorrectly. Kulhman said nothing is ruder than someone who puts their backpack in an overhead bin after an announcement has been made that the space should be prioritized for roller bags or bigger luggage.

“Flight attendants often have to ask passengers to move their backpack under their seat in order to fit another passenger’s roller bag in the overhead space,” Kulhman said.

To make the boarding process more efficient, Kulhman reminds passengers to lay their backpacks or purses under the seat and reserve overhead bins for larger bags as a common courtesy.

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