15 Insider Stories From Cabin Crew You Might Not Hear on a Plane

From the passenger seat, every flight looks smooth and perfectly organized. But the reality behind the curtain is very different. Now, flight attendants from across the internet are sharing the real stories they usually keep quiet, giving us a peek at what truly happens at 35,000 feet.

“I’m a flight attendant. Today, I had a flight with only thirteen passengers.”

• There is almost always something wrong with the plane, but as long as it meets the requirements of the “minimum equipment list” (MEL), it is cleared to fly. © halfpintlc / Reddit
• There’s a special frequency called “Guard” that all aircraft are supposed to monitor. It’s used in emergencies or when an aircraft ends up on the wrong frequency and controllers need to contact them to switch to the correct one. The channel is full of pilots communicating with each other and people accidentally requesting gate assignments and making other radio calls. © dog_in_the_vent / Reddit
• If you’re on a busy flight, try to board as late as possible. This way, the overhead compartments will be full, and your luggage will be checked for free. © thistlef*** / Reddit
• “Where are we flying over right now?” We never know. © SkyWaitress / Reddit

“This is how our flight attendant displayed the snacks.”

• When you ask us to adjust the temperature, we’ll pretend to do it. Planes are generally colder because, if we hit turbulence, warm temperatures will make it much more likely that someone will vomit. I have no idea why. © AAKKMM / Reddit
• Sometimes there are body parts in the storage area near your luggage when they are transporting organs for hospitals. Your pets are also in this area. © oh_sneezeus / Reddit
• Planes are hardly ever given a thorough clean throughout the day. Turnarounds need to happen quickly, so they just get a quick vacuum and the bathrooms are wiped down to look and smell clean. Airplane bathrooms are disgusting, and you should never go in there without shoes. People pee on the floor all the time. © halfpintlc / Reddit

“The flight attendant made a device stand.”

• A flight attendant told me that, in the event that passengers have to cover their heads, you should not lock your fingers above your head, but rather place one hand on top of the other. This way, if something falls on your hands or head, you’ll still have one good hand to use. © DeviantOffspring / Reddit
• Prisoners are sometimes transported on commercial airline flights (accompanied by law enforcement officers). © Rob9159 / Reddit
• Don’t drink the coffee. The water comes from an onboard system with a fill port located next to the port from which the lavatories are drained. The water system routinely fails E. coli checks. Also, when washing your hands with the same water, make sure you always use soap.
  Lastly, don’t put your food directly on the tray tables. © GoHomePig / Reddit
• We don’t ask you to put your seats in the upright position during take-off and landing because we’re unpleasant people. It’s because we only have ninety seconds to evacuate the plane in an emergency, and a reclined seat could prevent the person in the row behind from getting out. © dallenhill / Reddit

“I flew from Seattle to San Diego. I was really stressed that the flight would be cancelled because it was delayed, and I was trying to get to the hospital in time to see my mum before she died. I cried a lot. The flight attendant brought me a box of tissues and this note. I was really touched by her kindness.”

• When people ask us about delays, we usually give them a made-up reason because the real answer would worry passengers. “We have a minor technical problem and the engineers are on their way.” In reality, however: “The cabin pressure isn’t working.” © CheatingOutlaw / Reddit
• You know that tape you see on aeroplanes? It’s not duct tape; it’s speed tape. It’s not used for critical repairs. It’s usually used for minor cosmetic or aerodynamic fixes.
  For example, the windscreen of a plane is sandwiched between the airframe and the outer plates, but there is a seal between the outer plate and the windscreen for cosmetic and aerodynamic purposes. Eventually, this sealant needs replacing, so they put speed tape over it until the plane goes in for scheduled maintenance.
  Hooking a plane up to a push-back vehicle and moving it to the maintenance hangar is a long process. They’re not going to do that for every minor repair. © Unknown author / Reddit
• It was fairly common for people to leave phones, tablets, wallets, etc. in the seat pockets, which we would then find during security checks when the aircraft was being prepared for the next flight. Due to security, we can’t take them back to the base airport, so they are handed over to a dispatcher along with the paperwork. We just have to hope the dispatcher doesn’t pocket them! © Unknown author / Reddit
• As a flight attendant, I’ve lost count of the number of people who ask to switch seats so they can sit with their family and kids. Most passengers are nice about it, but some refuse. In those cases, I suggest you just agree because, if you don’t, I’ll smile, hand you a juice box and say, “Congrats, you’re babysitting kids now.”

These behind-the-scenes moments show that while we settle into our seats, the crew is handling far more than we ever imagine. And if you want to keep exploring more surprising, funny, or touching real-life confessions, you can check out another roundup of true events so unbelievable they read like fiction.