IMPORTANT ETIQUETTE GUIDELINES FOR AIR TRAVELERS

If you’re seeking a pleasant experience while flying there are certain guidelines you need to follow. Be mindful of your airport manners and lead by example to enjoy a smooth, hassle free flight.

Here are 9 essential rules for appropriate behaviour at the airport and during flights.

1. Be prepared to go through security
Don’t wait until you are on top of the conveyer belt to start to get ready. If you have a laptop, take it out of the case and put it in a separate bin. Put some identification on the top of your laptop. Move away as quickly as possibly from the conveyor when your items come off. Allow the people behind you the space and easy access to collect their items. Hopefully they will move along quickly also.

2. Boarding the Plane
Get to your seat and move in. Do not block the aisle, and do not stop to put your luggage above Remember to share. The foot space under your seat in front of you is yours, but the overhead is a shared communal area.

3. Mind your phone manners
Turn your phone off when asked by the flight attendants. Do not scream when you are allowed to use them. Everyone throughout the plane does not need to know the details of your phone conversation. Be considerate of the people around you.

4. Be conscious when using a laptop
Remember they do make noise. It can be annoying if you use your laptop or play noisy games. There is a sound control and laptops do vibrate and could bounce the seat in front of you. Children need games and toys to keep them content during the flight, but do not make them the noisiest ones they own. Nice quiet games and toys work too.

5. If you must recline…
When you hear those announcements that you are free to recline your seats and use your snack trays, just be gentle. You do not want to bounce around the person in front of you by quickly moving those trays up and down. Nor do you need to recline so fast or far that it is a tremendous inconvenience to the person behind you.

6. Be aware of those around you
When you get out of your seat during the flight, use your armrest to push yourself up or to get back into your seat. Do not grab the back of the seat in front of you. When you use the back of their seat, you are pulling them back, possibly waking them up from a nap and even grabbing their hair.

7. Watch Those Bags on Your Shoulder
When you are moving back the aisle getting on the plane, watch those bags you are carrying on your shoulder. They can be painful when you swing or turn and hit the person as you go by. If you duck quickly, you might just miss the flying bag. Stay alert and prepared to move quickly when one is coming your direction.

8. Remember the overhead bins are shared space
You do not have to run up and down the aisles assisting people trying to put their bags in the overhead compartments. But, if you are right there, help them out. It moves things along.

9. Wait Your Turn
When it is time to exit the plane, wait your turn. Do not come rushing and pushing from the back to get a few people ahead. Go seat-by-seat, row-by-row.