I love traveling, but I absolutely hate going to the airport, shuffling through security, waiting at the gate, and sitting on a cramped plane for hours. And the whole journey can become even more excruciating when flights are delayed or canceled.
But no matter how frustrating it gets, it’s best to always be kind to the airline staff. After all, they’re just trying to do their jobs. One woman recently learned this lesson the hard way after threatening to cancel her entire trip. Below, you’ll find the full story that an observer shared on Reddit, as well as some of the replies readers weighed in with.
Air travel can be stressful, especially when flights are being delayed or canceled
Image credits: Prostock-studio/Envato (not the actual photo)
But as one woman learned the hard way, it’s never worth it to take out your frustration on the airline staff
Image credits: Image-Source/Envato (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Waste_of_Bison
Millions of people travel by plane every single day
According to the United States Federal Aviation Administration, 2.9 million passengers fly on over 45,000 flights every single day. Every year, the FAA handles 16,405,000 flights, and this year, the Transportation Security Administration reported that they actually set a new record for the amount of passengers flying on a single day. On the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, TSA shared that over 2.95 million passengers set off on flights.
Because of the crowds airports have been seeing, staff members have been forced to deal with record numbers of passengers as well. The more people are in the airport, the more stressful the experience can be for everyone involved. If you have to stand in the security line for 30 minutes, you might be anxious about missing your flight and in a terrible mood by the time you make it through.
If flyers are making their way through the airport feeling grumpy, they just might take out all of their frustration on the airline staff that just wants to help them get to their destination in a timely manner. But according to Aviation Pros, no matter how stressful traveling through an airport may be, working there is probably even worse.
First of all, many airport jobs operate 24 hours a day, which means employees aren’t always afforded a lot of rest. It’s also important to take into account the traffic that drivers have to suffer through to make it into the airport. If you only fly a few times a year, it might not be so bad to be stuck in bumper to bumper traffic outside of the airport. But imagine having to sit through that every single day on your way into work. Would you start your shift in a great mood?
Working in an airport is not for the faint of heart
Another important aspect of working in an airport is security. Even if you don’t actually work at a security checkpoint, it’s important to be aware of your surroundings and how travelers are acting. Security measures are constantly being heightened, and it’s extremely important for all airline staff to be vigilant.
At the same time, dealing with frustrated travelers is an inevitable part of the job. Sadly, not every passenger will be a delight, and exhaustion from traveling or anger about delays can make them even more difficult. They might demand upgrades, shake their fist at an employee until they get to “speak to the manager” or refuse to follow rules that are designed to keep them safe.
Unfortunately, the woman featured in this story is probably far from the first person who has ever spoken to that employee in this way. In fact, the stress of checking in passengers at the airport all day long can even take a toll on workers’ physical health.
According to a study from the International Labor Organization, about half of airport check-in workers reported that they have constant neck pain, shoulder pain and/or lower back pain. Unfortunately, for many of them, this pain is constant.
It’s never a good idea to be disrespectful to others, but it’s certainly not wise when you’re in a situation where they can make your life easier (or more difficult). We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation down below, pandas. Then, if you’d like to check out another Bored Panda piece featuring drama when flying, look no further than right here!
Later, the author clarified a few more details about the story
Amused readers shared their reactions and reveled in the woman getting her karma
Some even shared similar experiences of their own
