There’s no shortage of passengers behaving badly while cruising the sky. In November, fellow flyers used duct tape on a man’s wrists and ankles, to stop him from trying to force open an aircraft door mid-flight. Days later, a flight from Paris to Atlanta had to be diverted to Dublin when an unruly passenger caused a scene. Authorities say there have already been more than 1,800 incidents of unruly behavior on planes in 2024. And the year isn't over yet.
If you’re lucky, you’ll never have to witness extreme or violent behavior while traveling to your destination. But we can’t promise that you won't be subjected to an annoying fellow passenger. From stinky feet, to excessive displays of PDA, airplane passengers are going through the most. They've been posting their worst air travel experiences online for all the world to see. Bored Panda compiled a list of the ones that had our jaws on the floor.
#1 Please Don't Be Garbage. To The Passenger Who Let Their Child Do This Today: Shame On You
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#2 They Found Out Their Flight Got Delayed
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#3 Passagers From A France - Dominican Republic Flight
Image credits: reddit.com
Being stuck in an enclosed vessel thousands of miles up in the sky means you need to stay put until you reach your destination. You can’t just stop, open a door, and get out, as you might be able to do while traveling by road. But this didn’t stop one man from trying anyway, during a recent flight from Milwaukee to Dallas in November.
The 29-year-old demanded he be allowed to exit the plane “immediately” mid-flight. When the aircraft crew told him it wasn’t possible, he took it upon himself to try and force open the door. As CBS reported, a flight attendant “positioned herself between the man and the cabin door, blocking his access.” The man then rushed toward the attendant and hit her, prompting fellow passengers to intervene.
#4 Yes. I Have The Middle Seat And I Have Legs. I Was Eye Rolled When I Politely Asked If The Window Seat Passenger Could Move Her Backpack. I Guess I Should Have Left My Legs At Home
Image credits: scoutdashrebaling
#5 2 People Hoarding Sleep Mats At The Airport
2 people are using 8 sleeping mats in MSP airport after a bunch of flights to chicago were cancelled. Plenty of others are sleeping on the floor so these selfish tricks can be extra cozy.
Image credits: Vetusexternus
#6 On My Flight To Reykjavik Just Now
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It took three people to restrain the unruly passenger, and they ended up using duct-tape to tie his ankles and wrists together. Needless to say, the man was arrested by the FBI as soon as the plane touched down. Abdul-al-Jabbar Oloruntoba Olaiya faces charges of interfering with a flight crew through violence or intimidation, under the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States. If convicted, he could spend up to 20 years behind bars.
#7 Never Thought It’d Happen To Me! Planes Are A Lawless Place
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#8 Why Was Everyone Barefoot
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#9 People Like This Make Me Lose Faith In Humanity
Flew out of IAD earlier this week to go home and caught this while trying to find a seat near a charging area to fill up my phone before my flight.
Image credits: Diligent_Basket_9960
There were around 2,000 incidents involving passengers behaving very badly in 2023. And the Federal Aviation Administration revealed there have already been more than 1,800 incidents so far in 2024. A former flight attendant described it perfectly when they wrote that “in recent years, it seems that respect for crew members' instructions can be as difficult to find as lost luggage.”
In writing about the uptick in unruly passenger behavior, the former crew member pleads with passengers to practice tolerance "and understand that they're going to occupy a small space with people from all walks of life. They should do so with respect."
#10 We Were Greeted By Hsi/FBI
This guy rushed the front to confront the FA in a threatening manner apparently for not receiving snacks as he was sleeping when they serviced his row. Apparently this jerk then decided to smoke in his seat and would not comply with FA.
Image credits: dsmero
#11 Zero Respect
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#12 Girl Sleeping Across All 5 Seats In The Cellphone Charging Section At The Airport When Holiday Season Is In Full Swing
Image credits: Ratgar138
In the article, Anaïs Monique shares some lesser-known facts about the lack of hygiene on some aircrafts. The former flight attendant reveals that some passengers think it’s okay to use food tray tables as diaper changing stations. Monique also warns that lavatory floors aren’t as clean as you may think, and cautions passengers to always wear shoes, or socks at the very least.
“The stains on the carpeted aisles are probably not dried-up cola, and the galley floors have seen various forms of waste and the bottoms of thousands of dirty shoes,” they wrote. And on the dried-up cola note, you might want to put down your lunch before you read any further...
#13 Unbelievable
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#14 Dear Rude Couple Who Put Their Bag On A Seat So Nobody Would Sit Next To You During The Flight Delay, You Left That Bag Behind In Iah Terminal E. I Enjoyed Watching You Walk Away And Forget It
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#15 Terminal Was So Crowded People Were Sitting On The Floor While This Woman Took 3 Seats For Her Bags
Image credits: Wowsuchcreativename
Those on board a Delta flight last September were subjected to what the pilot called a “bio-hazard” when someone’s very bad bout of diarrhea ended up all over the cabin of the Airbus A350. The plane was just two hours into the eight-hour flight from the U.S. to Spain. "This is a biohazard issue," the pilot reportedly told air-traffic control. "We've had a passenger who's had diarrhea all the way through the airplane, so they want us to come back to Atlanta." The pilot promptly made a u-turn to get passengers to fresher pastures.
#16 Man Uses Airplane Safety Brochure & Inflight Magazine To Protect His Naked Feet From Touching The Floor. He Put Them Back In The Seat Pocket When We Landed
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#17 This Was On For The Duration Of A 10 Hour Overnight Flight - Blinking And All
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#18 Blocking The Second Register With Your Service Dog At The Airport
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"Delta flight 194 from Atlanta to Barcelona returned to Atlanta following an onboard medical issue," said a representative at the time. "Our teams worked as quickly and safely as possible to thoroughly clean the airplane and get our customers to their final destination. We sincerely apologize to our customers for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans."
#19 Now I’m Going To Be One Of Those People Who Wipes Down My Seat And Screen
Dude went to the bathroom barefoot and then navigated the touchscreen with his toes. I’m gonna need a Silkwood shower after witnessing this
Image credits: Powerful-Carry187
#20 Truly Hate Sitting Next To Children
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#21 Littering Nail Clippings In Public Spaces
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But it seems it’s not just humans behaving badly. In April, a United Airlines flight had to be diverted after a dog pooped in the aisle. It took the crew two hours to clean up the mess. The incident happened next to a first class toilet, deeming it unusable for the rest of the flight. A passenger on board posted pictures of the grossness, describing how the crew used paper towels to clean the carpet. "The smell never quite went away," said the passenger.
#22 Woman Kept Covering My Screen With Her Hair During A Flight
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#23 This Girl At The Airport Waits Until The Queue Moves All The Way Forward To Move. People Confronted Her And She Said “It’s The Same If I Move Now Or Later”
Image credits: reddit.com
#24 In Addition To The Screaming Children, I Also Get Feet
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#25 We’re Waiting In A Crowded Airport Terminal And This Toddler Wouldn’t Stop Running Around And Screaming, So Her Mother Gave Her A Whistle To Play With
Image credits: drforrester-tvsfrank
#26 This Kid Was Running Up And Down The Aisle And Using The Seats As His Own Personal Jungle Gym
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#27 The Person Behind Me On The Flight Put Their Jacket On My Seat
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#28 I Was At The Airport And My Leg Was In A Cast. I Had To Use Crutches, And All The Seats Were Taken. I Was On My Way To Get Into The Wheelchair, But This Woman And Her Mom Rushed To Them Before Me. Luckily A Very Nice And Kind Woman Gave Me Her Seat. Some People Have No Shame
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#29 It's Not My Armrest, It's Their Footrest
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#30 Guy Wafting His Dirty Sandal Throughout The Plane
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#31 We Know It’s A Stretch, But Please Save Your Yoga For The Studio
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#32 On Our Flight From Den To Bna, This Women Took Turns To Punch, Shove, And Kick The Seat In Front Of Them. This Continued For The Duration Of The Flight. United Airlines Opened An Investigation And Is Attempting To Ban The Couple From Flying United
The flight attendants were made aware of the couple’s actions, and attempted to approach them nicely. The couple ignored the staff and continued to bully the lady in front of them when the staff wasn’t looking.
Image credits: cassini2019
#33 People Who Stand Right Up Against The Luggage Conveyor Instead Of Giving 3 Ft (1 Meter) So Others Can Watch For, And Step In, For Their Luggage
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#34 Ready To Get Triggered?
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#35 I Had Dreadful Flight This Morning
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#36 Plane Etiquette?
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#37 This Family Letting Their Kid Spill Chips In The Airport. The Absolute Mess They Left Behind
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#38 This Lady Behind Me On The Airplane. To Clarify, That Armrest Is For My Chair
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#39 Speaker Phone In Sky Club
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#40 Lady Trying To Smoke On Plane
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#41 Not My Seat. Still Annoying
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#42 Taking Up 4 Seats At A Very Busy Gate
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#43 About To Start A 9 And A Half Hour Flight
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#44 My Dad Is On A 20 Hour Flight Back From South Africa And Said He's About 40 Screwdrivers Deep. When I Asked Why He Just Sent Me This
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#45 No Regard For Personal Space On This Flight
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#46 There Are About 15 Seats Unoccupied By A Person At Our Gate By This Group That Just Dumped All Of Their Luggage There And Are Now Wandering The Airport. Meanwhile Every Other Seat Is Full At The Gate And People Don’t Have Places To Sit
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#47 People Stuffing Chewing Gum Wrappers In The Charging Ports At The Airport
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#48 Delta’s New Slogan: “Air Out Your Feet In A Delta Suite”
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#49 The Two People Sitting Next To Me On The Airplane Take Both My Armrests
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#50 Someone Stuck Gum In The Plane Seat
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#51 This Person Sitting Next To Me On An Airplane
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#52 Lady In Front Of Me Has A Nice Mink Coat - Said She Couldn’t Put It In The Overhead
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#53 I Don't Know This Man
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#54 So Why Aren't There Small Pieces Of Paper In And Around His Mouth?
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#55 Blocking The Whole Aisle With Your Charger. Or You Could, Ya Know, Sit Next To It Maybe? Miami Airport
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#56 Woman With Green Shoes Taking Up A Full Row Of Seats At The Airport Without Actually Sitting With Them. Airport Gate With Very Little Seating
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#57 Anyone Need A Priority Seat In A Packed Airport Lounge?
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#58 Some Kid Peed His Pants. Let’s Use The Airplane Air Vent To Dry Them Out
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#59 Someone Dropped A Big Pile Of Spaghetti On The Ground At The Newark Airport And Walked Away. It Sat There For Hours Because It's The Newark Airport
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#60 It Finally Happened
I thought you were all making this upside down thing up, but here we are, deep into coach heading to LAX, and this person is doing some inverted yoga pose while whomever is in the middle seat is just praying for their flight to end soon.
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#61 Guy Keeps Playing His Snap Stories While On An Airplane Without Headphones. Lady Asks “Can You Wait To Play That Til You Get Off The Plane”. His Reply, “Why?”
Image credits: KONGbeGONE
#62 Passenger Of Flight From Bacolod-Silay Airport Received A Bomb Threat Via Airdrop While Inside The Aircraft. Flight Delayed For 2 Hours
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#63 This Lady Has Been Running Her Bare Feet All Over The Seats At The Lax Airport
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#64 This Person Taking A Very Loud Conference Call In The Airport
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#65 Whoever Left A Dirty Diaper On The Floor In The Denver Airport
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#66 My Sister Is On A 6 Hour Flight To Mexico
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#67 Seconds Before She Kicked His Head. Stay Classy Yall
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#68 Don't Worry Buddy, You're Only Blocking 4 Seats At A Crowded International Airport
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#69 I'm An Airplane Cleaner And Sh*t Like This Is Infuriating. Please Don't Do This
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#70 Thanks For Spreading That Smile At The Airport. Selfish
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#71 The Only 4 Available Power Outlets In The Whole Terminal. (Yes I Looked And Yes I Asked To Use Them)
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#72 Comfortable Mate?
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#73 How It Started vs. How It's Going
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#74 Sky Club Yoga
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#75 Lady Had Two Service Dogs On Plane
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#76 At Least I Had My Mask On
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#77 Oc Why Are People Like This???
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#78 Found One In The Wild
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#79 This Guy That's Playing His Music Out Loud On A Full Flight (At Max Volume)
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#80 Family Spending Some Quality Time Together At Airport Smoking Room
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#81 Classy People On My Brother-In-Law's Flight To Cabo
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#82 Women Spreading In The Airport
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#83 Gave Up My Window Seat For This Guys Kid As He Looked Super Happy About It And Didn't Have The Heart To Say "No". I Get The Middle Seat In The Middle Isle And The Dad Does This All Flight. Just Gross
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#84 Full Volume TikTok’s At Reagan Airport
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#85 Personal Charging Station
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#86 Just When I Thought I’d Seen It All
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#87 Aggressive LED Light Attached To Kindle During Night Flight
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#88 3 Hours Flight, Back And Forth Shoving Of This Parcel Under My Seat
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#89 This Passenger Put Her Bare Foot Inbetween My Armrests During A 10 Hr Flight! I Noticed When I Felt Her Toenails On My Arm. Ew
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#90 Airport Charging Station
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#91 This Loser Who Stuck Their Gum In The Seat Back Pocket On An Airplane During A Pandemic
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#92 Someone Cook Steak On Flying Plane
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#93 At Bwi Airport. Rude Couple Knock Their Plate Off Table While Leaving And Don’t Pick It Up
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#94 2 Mins Into A 4 Hour Flight She’s Made Herself Comfortable
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#95 Not What They Mean By Comfort Plus
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#96 Straight To Jail
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#97 Taking Your Child To The Airport Smoking Room
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#98 Reclining Your Seat Back On The Plane But Leaning Forward The Whole Flight... Thanks Random Inconsiderate Guy
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#99 Waiting To Board While The Plane Hasn’t Eve Actually Let Its Passengers Off Yet, As If It’s Going To Get You There Any Faster
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#100 Heading To Los Angeles For The Mart This Weekend. This Snoring Couple Was Last Years Seat Mates
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