Most useful tips on a flight
 

I understand this is not a spotters forum but I feel like putting a thread here to collect your tips for when we fly again.

The question is simple: irrespective the type of commercial flight (short/long haul - business / pleasure) what is the most useful trick you have discovered to enjoy the flight more or make it a bit more comfortable.

Get an upgrade - by fair means or foul. Standard, economy seating is abysmal for anything more than 15 minutes!

Drink water to keep the innards hydrated, eat sparingly if possible, abstain from alcohol (unless in 1st Class), set your watch to destination time to get psychologically in the groove and smile at the cabin crew :-)

SHJ I have heard those suggestions many times and find that I may be in a small category to whom they do not apply! I eat when I feel like it and drink alcohol as I feel. Whilst not a great consumer of alcohol on the ground, I find it's influence on me REDUCED in the air! My watch stays on departure time until I land. Finding one's own balance is trial and error.

Upgrade is certainly the case and the older I got the more so! I now pay, or use Points, whenever I can. Certainly I do not travel long haul in Y and have not dones so in over 20 years.

I thought I had already answered when I realised it was PAXboy's post! :) Ditto on all counts. However, if you're young you can put up with a lot more discomfort than us oldies! :)

True Pistonprop! I take things much easier now and plan the long sector timing carefully. Jumping off long haul and going into the office (even from the old Upper Class) was something for my 30s!

Be pleasant to the cabin crew .... say good morning (or equivalent) on boarding, when speaking to them, or being spoken to, make and keep eye contact and smile. Thank them on disembarkation. Be civilised, polite and respectful, and you'll have a good flight.

Alsacienne
 

Dead right! Simply because we are paying customers doesn't give us the right to treat them as underlings. "Restaurant rules" is a phrase used by a mate of mine.

I must have been a cheapskate for international travel LOL,we always ended up flying 'Cattle Class' :),we always checked up on upgraded seats but the difference in price was often enough to pay for the whole rest of the holiday (or at least a major part of it).I used to love flying in the 747 and as somebody else posted recently I usually tried to get in the rear window seats,the couple of rows which only had 2 seats together.7-11 hours of relative discomfort is doable when it (say) pays for your entire holiday car rental cost.
We have always been polite and well behaved with the CC's but possibly because we dress for practical comfort rather than style - have never been offered an upgrade (except for a couple of jump seats over the years :) ).

Alsacienne
A good way to operate in all situations even when not at 30,000ft + I find.

Paxboy
With you all the way on your comments.

I always try to enjoy my flying even when it is at a bad time, or poor carrier, or indeed taking me some where I really do not want to go to. It is a privilege to be able to look at our world from up there, so in away I cherish each opportunity as I know that at some stage in my life I will no longer be able to do it, and I will miss it greatly.

I always choose a cheap window seat in the Row just in front of the over-wing emergency Exit. This virtually guarantees you won’t have to endure someone’s knees in the small of back but also no chance of a horrible child banging their tray table behind you for a couple of hours en-route.

When the engines shut down upon gate arrival, stay seated because you will not be going anywhere for several minutes. I always have a silent chuckle when there is a delay opening the doors because people standing up never look comfortable.

If you are a regular flyer, invest in a good pair of noise cancelling headphones.

I always wear natural fibres cotton wool etc much better in the dry recirculated air. Pair of stout shoes/boots. I always count the rows fore and aft to the nearest exit as I sit down, every little helps !

Good idea for a thread in these times, Rwy In Sight.

I certainly agree about respect of the CC. When I was a child my parents taught me that the call button was (pretty much) like a '999' [aka 911] and this was doubtless to keep my naughty little fingers away from it. However, It means that I cannot remember the last time I used the call button - I mean it might be more than five years! I always wait until a CC is passing to ask for something extra during service or, when not in service, I wander to the galley to ask for a cuppa or something. Irrespective of where I am sitting.

There was a flight on Virgin Australia (PER-MEL) in Y and the food was all very spicy. All I could eat was the cheese and crackers. But CC sourced several for me and then, as I had eaten the choc pudding - would I like another? Yes please and two more arrived! So that got me through the three hour sector!

Thanks S.o.S. for the comments and all of you.

One very good piece of advice come for Slot him/her self about people barely making the high-level frequent mile program and behave like they are the most knowledgable pax on earth and there are others they qualify in no time and are so humble they will not even ask for an extra glass of water if the crew is too busy.

Also my advice is a bit practical: as during the meal there are many covers and detritus. If the seat next to me is empty I open a vomit / waste bag to throw what I don't need - not food I love airline food. The bag is given to the crew after they take the trays away.

Most useful? Keep your seatbelt fastened all the time. Not tight but fastened.

Same as Runway - take a plastic bag to but in all the rubbish you generate through the flight......

Try and avoid doing anything similar to what these passengers have done:

https://m.facebook.com/PassengerShaming/

Rather than count how many rows you are from an exit I look for "landmarks". Things like bulkheads, toilets, galleys. Works for me on wide bodies, perhaps not so effective on narrow bodies.

Pay for the best seat you can. When I was younger economy was fine because (a) I WAS younger and (b) there was more space in economy in those days. Now I save up and buy premium economy for long haul and, if I have enough "air miles" if it's an overnight I'll try and upgrade to business. Always look at the price of a "better" class; I've found Business for LESS than economy and Business for only £100 more than premium economy by being flexible on dates/times. You don't have to come home from the same place you fly to. In fact, you don't even have to come back to the same place. I once went Manchester/Los Angeles and came home San Francisco/London - they just charge half of each fare (usually).

Try not to interfere with things the crew are doing but, on long haul, get up and move around if you can. Don't just go to the toilet, take advantage of the fact that you're out of your seat (so you've disturbed your seat mates probably) and stay out while you do a few stretching exercises.

Boarding and disembarkation, if someone is having a problem lifting a bag (yes, they shouldn't bring a bag they can't lift but.......) give them a hand - keep things moving.

In the end, relax. Make sure you check in in plenty of time, particularly if you want to do some shopping. Keep an eye on the screens showing which gate to go to and have a look at the signs about how long it takes to get to each group of gates so you can gauge your trip to the gate. It's the same at the far end. let everyone else bust a gut. By the time they get through to the baggage carousel you'll catch them up just as the bags start to appear.

1. Count the seats to your nearest exit (both ways)....it might one day help you get out when all is not well
2. Keep your shoes on until after take off and put them back on before landing....sharp red hot metal is a poor companion for flip flopped or socked feet
3. Read the safety card, even if you've flown 1,000 times before....I'm not ashamed to admit that a dropping oxygen mask has a certain startle factor
4. If you can, enjoy the view....its a privilege. Distant night time thunderstorms, sunsets and sunrises, the vast empty spaces of the oceans and continents, familiar cities and landmarks and of course those lovely fluffy clouds
5. Play the take off game by estimating the time between application of take off power and rotate and see how it compares with the actual.....although again not ashamed to admit that on one very hot Jo'burg departure I really did begin to think about the brace position (see safety card above)
6. Take a picture of your aeroplane....in 20 odd years time it will be "a classic"
7. Agree with Less Hair; seat belt always
8. When you are in a bit of chop, just be glad you are flying in 2021 and not 1951

As previously advised, wear clothing made from natural fibres. But not just for comfort - it could save your life, too.

Just coming up to 79 years old, and my wife[aka Senior management] has decreed no more flying!!!!. B....er!. Had years of it, loved every minute. Always treated the C.C with respect, even after having coffee spilled all over my new trousers. As many have said, count rows to exits, get up and walk about, even down to the Canaries. Never used a call button, just waited my moment. It pays off, especially with Chocolate puds!!. [3 on a Virgin long haul]. Commiserated with the Chief Steward on a Malaysian 380 about the rotten luck they had had. Got a tour of the aircraft,except flight deck, and gifts on leaving. Several flight deck landings before 911. We always regarded ourselves as privileged to be able to fly, and always treated the C.C. as friends. Some good advice on here. Above all, enjoy!!!!. Over for me, Cruises from Southampton when they come back, but what lovely memories [including Concorde]!.

Thanks for keeping the thread going. Yes it is good to treat the crew with respect.

Some very good tips / advice there. It does however amaze me seeing people walking around the cabin or into the toilets with no shoes on. After a few hours you can guarantee there will be liquid on the floor in the toilets and it may or may not be water.

I'm a Frenchman established in Canada, and I remember my ancestors crossing the Atlantic in sailing ships, eating roten food for three weeks, and sinking once every ten times. I enjoy every flight, and when something non-normal happens... some adventure at least!

Eighteen hole Doc-Marten boots are not a good choice for air travel either; young lad on a Dublin-London trip behind me in the security line up had them on, It was the usual shoes off and place them in a basket for the scan. I think he spent more time taking them off and putting them back on again than we did in the air.

Boots I often wear for travel trigger some magnetic arches and not others. When my mother was living on the Isle of Man (in the days before automatic 'shoes off') the boots always triggered the detector at IOM but never at LTN or LGW. I mentioned this on a couple of occaisions at the IOM and they returned a frosty stare and said that all UK magnetic hoops were set to the same levels!!

Nonsense - try ABZ - its always set higher there than at LHR - gives them something to do

I used to fly a lot, being in Regional roles, mostly within SE Asia and Dubai, plus 2 or 3 a year to France or UK so I have a few routines.

Never fly in the morning if you can avoid it, unless you can take gin and tonic at breakfast.
Never wear formal trousers, pack those and wear easily laundered chinos or similar - you don't want to look a peasant in rubbish strides
Have a gin and tonic in the lounge before boarding
Skechers footwear that slips on and off easily for security
Sony WH noise cancelling headphones
iPad with movies already in case the IFE is out of action
Be courteous to the crew
Be at the gate early - you don't want to board last and have the glares from the people you are delaying
Long haul, drink until unconscious.
Overnight flight, change into PJs or similar
Go up the pointy end if you can

Keep passport, phone and wallet/purse on your person until after takeoff and again, before landing.

Don't wear brown shoes with a blue suit.

I would make a case that they should never leave your person. In an emergency you may not have time to retrieve them.

Thanks meleagertoo!

My passport, wallet, phone and a couple of other things are in a small shoulder bag at the seat. The plan being that I can quickly loop the shoulder strap over my head - with the bag sitting in front, not to the side. Then I will know where it is and it should not snag on anything during an emergency exit.

Agree with almost all the above; a couple of suggestions about booking which may make the flight less stressful.

Make your bookings yourself so you can consider all the options.

If it's a long haul trip through a hub like CDG, AMS, FRA etc, there will probably be multiple daily flights on the short leg, but only one or two on the long leg. Leave a longish transit time outbound (at least 2-3 hrs) because missing the long haul flight or arriving without a checked bag may be seriously inconvenient (especially if you are going up country or boarding a ship). On the homebound trip book the shortest possible transit time - there's always a later flight back to UK, and if your bag doesn't make it your dirty washing will be delivered to your front door surprisingly quickly.

If it's a short haul flight on a low cost airline, try to avoid the last departure of the day - that's the one that may be cancelled if delays have built up during the day.

Strongly support keeping your vital documents/cards/phone on your person or very close all the time.

And finally, if your luggage never leaves your sight (because it's in the cabin with you) you won't suffer the heartsink of being the last person waiting in vain at the carousel...

Bring a biro with you. Always useful for filling in those complicated landing cards!!

except in countries that insist on pencil..................

"If it's a short haul flight on a low cost airline, try to avoid the last departure of the day - that's the one that may be cancelled if delays have built up during the day."

Applies to any airline - and the last flight of the day often means you're parked at some unknown corner of an airfield rather than at a gate and have to wait for the only bus still working to ferry you all to the terminal- LHR is very good at this.

Tablets
 

To make your time away from home more comfortable take your tablets and a copy of your prescription with you. Not in the hold bags. Baggage often goes missing.

Once, they overbooked economy, and needed to move somebody to first class to make room.

We saw the cabin attendant walking down the aisle with a list, and we happened to belong to the frequent flyers club and were dressed nicely, so we got bumped up to first class. :)

I think the dressed nicely was key. One of us in a jacket…. A step up from business casual.

I’m always nice to the cabin crew.

If you have a tight connection between flights, ask the crew on the first leg if they know what gate the connecting flight departs from. It can make the difference between catching a flight and cooling your heels for hours.

Avoid the last row of seats. They can’t recline. The seats by the emergency exit over the wing have more leg room, but you have to be physically able to remove the exit door in case of emergency.