Why are people so rude on planes?

So we asked experts — two psychologists, and a veteran pilot — to find out. Flying ordeals — long lines, security scrutinizing you, and your belongings, being told to take off shoes and fasten seat belts — make people feel like they lack control, which leads to fear, anxiety, and ultimately acting out.



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Keep your voice down, unless you're putting in a drink order A plane is not a private place. It's shared, similar to a doctor's office or a museum. Keep that in mind when talking, and use a hushed voice over a booming one to respect the travelers around you.

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Back in 2012, the Federal Aviation Administration announced that cellphones could interfere with screens used by pilots flying Boeing 737 Next Generation and 777 airplanes. Boeing discovered the problem earlier in screens made by Honeywell. Airlines weren't ordered to immediately replace these screens.

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Multiple pilots stepped up to answer the question, but the response was unanimous, while you may have the best of intentions - don't do it. Scott Kinder, a 737 Captain at a Major U.S. Airline for over 10 years said, Don't even think about it.

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In 2022 year, Frontier Airlines reported 20.26 customer complaints for each 100,000 enplanements on domestic-scheduled operations. This was the highest rate of customer complaints among U.S. carriers.

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“For the most part, pilots fear those things they cannot control,” Smith wrote. “We are less afraid of committing a fatal error than of finding ourselves victimised by somebody else's error or else at the mercy of forces impervious to our skills or expertise.”

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Spirit. Like Frontier, Spirit has the skinniest rows of any American airline, with a seat pitch of 28 inches — and they don't recline. Spirit lagged at 8 out of 10 American airlines studied in the in The Points Guys' 2021 report.

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Uncomfortable seats, lost luggage and flight delays top the list of passengers' peeves – and airlines are finding solutions.

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Consequences. In the United States, passengers who disrupt the duties of a flight crew member can face fines up to $25,000 and sometimes lengthy prison sentences. In addition, the airline can choose to ban the problem passenger from any future flights.

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As just explained, interference is a civil wrong, and assault is a criminal offense. And in fact, any sort of offensive touching or threats against a crewmember can constitute both interference and assault.

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Any time you disobey a crewmember's instructions, you run the risk of violating federal law. But civil penalties and criminal prosecutions usually result only when passengers repeatedly ignore, argue with, or disobey flight attendants; or when they act out in a way that is dangerous.

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Pilots with a fear of heights aren't uncommon and in fact, the majority of people who are afraid of heights aren't affected by flying in an aircraft. There is a strong feeling of security when you close the door, and you should feel very comfortable in the hands of an experienced instructor.

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You are scared of all those “what ifs” which we encounter when we are nervous. There is more risk in a take-off than landing. The aircraft is heavy with fuel & has no speed or altitude, whereas, in landing the aircraft is light, has tons of speed & is already flying.

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Whether flying at night or during the day, pilots need to see some kind of horizon. They use this to determine the airplane's attitude. At night pilots will turn their gaze from outside to inside and use the artificial horizon. The artificial horizon is normally a simply globe split into two hemispheres.

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Here's the ranking of US airlines from MOST complaints in May 2022 to LEAST complaints in May 2022:
  • American Airlines (575 complaints)
  • United Airlines (400 complaints)
  • Frontier Airlines (301 complaints)
  • Delta Air Lines (281 complaints)
  • Spirit Airlines (269 complaints)
  • JetBlue Airways (244 complaints)


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A graphic of Wallethub's 2023 airline ranking. In terms of other key findings, Delta Air Lines was named the most reliable airline, while the least reliable was Frontier Airlines.

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American Airlines… Because of the 11 accidents, this makes them joint top with Air France for the airline with the most crashes in the world with 11 accidents apiece.

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“F*ck,” “D*mn,” “Sh*t” or “B*tch!” “Swearing can absolutely get you thrown off a plane,” says Hobica. “Flight attendants don't really want to hear from you to begin with. Everything is up to the flight crew and you never know if someone is in a bad mood or has no sense of humor.”

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While flight attendants are there to make your flight comfortable, [it's] not a service industry. They're not waiters, Gottsman explained. If you genuinely need assistance, that's what the call button is for. If you're just thirsty and the beverage cart hasn't come yet, sit tight and be patient.

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No one is saying you can't enjoy a tuna sandwich or a hard-boiled egg … but it's best to eat at the gate or in the terminal. Consider the other passengers when you bring something on board that's, let's say, fragrant. Especially on long flights (but even on short ones), the people around you may not appreciate it.

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