Cabin crew aren’t just there to keep passengers comfortable during a flight, but they also have the responsibility of making sure hundreds of people are safe for the duration of the journey. For the most part, passengers are courteous, but one flight attendant has revealed that sometimes passengers can be rude.
Though it is very rare, the flight attendant said they have their own “petty” tactics to get their own back on the rudest passengers, although it’s worth noting this is largely frowned upon by airlines.
The crew member remained anonymous, so it is impossible to know who they work for or what position they work in the cabin.
However, in a Reddit forum dedicated to cabin crew “dirty little secrets” the flight attendant revealed they sometimes disrupt in-flight entertainment to get revenge on rude passengers.
The anonymous crew member wrote: “I used to be a flight attendant and when someone was really rude I’d just go to the computer we had to reset the inflight tv screens and I’d keep resetting theirs sporadically so that they couldn’t watch their movie. Very petty of me I know.”
Of course, the likelihood that a crew member will try to get revenge on any passenger is extremely low. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t do little things to make their working day easier – especially if you’re on a long-haul flight.
Often passengers bring a small gift along for cabin crew as a token of their gratitude for the service. You should not do this with the expectation you will get special treatment – but in some cases, the crew will give you a little treat as a thank you.
Former US flight attendant Kat Kalami said there is a “simple” way passengers can get the “royal treatment” on their next flight.
In a video posted to her TikTok page, she said: “If you do this one simple thing on an aircraft I promise you, you will get the royal treatment from the flight attendants.
“Being a flight attendant is exhausting. You’re always in different time zones, waking up crazy hours and dealing with angry customers so I promise you the next time you fly if you want special treatment from the flight attendants this is all you have to do.”
According to Ms Kalami, the key to “special treatment” is by purchasing a £5 Starbucks gift card for your cabin crew.
“It means the world to us when customers give us this,” she said.
