"Babe, We've Just Taken Off": Unhinged Plane Passenger Stories, Shared By This Flight Attendant

Flying does something to us. We go up into the air and start acting like children, violating the rules that were put in place to protect us and make the whole experience as pleasant as possible. Even red signs and audio alerts aren't effective on many. So we need someone to guide us through.

Phoebe Grace works as a cabin crew member for Ryanair and shares snippets of her job on social media. In one of her recent TikTok videos, she revealed the wildest things passengers have said to her, reminding us that we need more babysitting on airplanes than we care to admit. Hopefully, the phrases will inspire us to be a little more considerate the next time we take to the skies.

More info: TikTok

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) classifies unruly behavior incidents into four levels: level 1 is "minor" (IATA's 'Cabin Operations Safety Best Practice Manual' says this could be argumentative behavior or non-compliance with safety regulations), level 2 is "moderate" (physically aggressive behavior, for instance), level 3 is "serious" (dangerous behavior, with an "intent or threat to injure," as IATA describes it), and level 4 is "flight deck breach" (which IATA classifies as "credible threat of death").

Data shows that there has been an increase in the rate of unruly passenger incidents. Based on over 24,500 reports from over 50 operators globally, there was 1 incident for every 480 flights in 2023 versus one incident for every 568 flights in 2022.

And wouldn't you know it, non-compliance with crew instruction was the most frequent descriptor.

However, the number of reports mentioning verbal and physically abusive behaviors also increased in 2023. The trends identified in IATA's figures are consistent with data from regional and national aviation regulators such as the US Federal Aviation Administration, the European Aviation Safety Agency, UK Civil Aviation Authority, and others.

In a 2023 document called 'Even safer and more enjoyable air travel for all: A strategy for reducing unruly and disruptive passenger incidents,' IATA said that while "only a tiny minority" of passengers behave badly, these travelers "have a disproportionate impact," as incidents could "threaten the safety and security of the aircraft, other passengers, and crew."

Bearing the brunt of disruptive passenger incidents places "a significant emotional burden" on cabin crew, said aviation psychologist Aleksandra Kapela.

"Their already demanding job, focused on ensuring safety, becomes even more challenging when dealing with disruptive passengers," Kapela explained.

Because of this, unruly passengers can face big fines — in the US, for example, they can reach up to $37,000 per incident, as well as criminal prosecution. Furthermore, airlines can also place them on internal no-fly lists.

So it's our own best interest to behave!