When I was at the airport last week we drug our own luggage through the doors, checked ourselves in, stripped down at TSA, and then were wrangled into zones to board the plane with food stuffed into the carry on for dinner. Growing up I caught the tail end of the glamorous jet age. My father worked for United Airlines so it was easy to fly to Chicago just for lunch or to Disneyland over the weekend...flying was an adventure. What I remember most was how fabulous is all seemed. We always dressed up for a flight. A skycap met us at the curb and took our luggage, then we made our way to the gate, boarded with a quick detour to the cockpit to watch the captain and crew prep for take off and get our wings. Then airline food was actually something to look forward to. On Pan Am seven course meals were catered by Maxim's Paris, on Braniff air hostess uniforms were designed by Pucci but my favorite part was the second floor lounge of the Boeing 747. Watching the grown-ups dressed in their 70's chic take the spiral staircase upstairs for cocktails was the highlight of my trip. Now I try to bring little things that make long flights more comfortable. Scented face wipes, cozy socks, a satin sleeping mask snacks and a real book are always in my bag. I also have to remember to be ready for just about anything. From the seatmate with too much cologne or the one actually sleeping on my shoulder. The kids behind me that seem to have forgotten their earbuds at home and I'm listening to Cars at max volume while they're kicking the seat which won't even recline for some reason. We can all do our part by remembering a few key things to make the flight a polite one for all. #politeinflight
1. Personal Space: Keep your bags stowed under the seat in front of you. It's easy on a long flight to spread out but tidy up from time to time gather you things and throw away your trash.
2. Sound Check: In such a close space it's important to use your headphone or earbuds when watching any media so you don't pollute the silence of those around you. Keep in mind that even with headphones on if you're playing the sound at maximum level your 5 inches away seat mate can still hear that and it's probably disturbing.
3. Arm Wrestling: Is this armrest your or mine? It's shared if you're in the middle. It's polite to ask first before using the armrest if you're in the middle, even though those on the end clearly have at least one dedicated armrest.
4. Phone Calls: Limit your phone calls to "we're leaving now" or "we've just landed" any more than that is too prolonged for the close quarters on an airplane.
5. Seating Assignments: When someone asks you if you would mind switching your seat so that they can sit with their travel companion moving would be the really nice thing to do. I'm always surprised at people that just flat out say no. Especially on a short flight.
