Most people who fly have been the victim of another passenger who’s done something boneheaded. Or rude. Or maybe they were only thinking of themselves and it put others at a disadvantage. An online website called Solitaire Bliss decided to see if there was a trend in terms of who committed these “crimes of airports and airplanes.”

What they did (their methodology)

The people at Solitaire Bliss surveyed residents in every state and asked them several questions about, essentially, “universally disliked” airport and airplane behaviors that they’re guilty of, that they’ve seen others do, the airlines they associate with these behaviors, and more.

Here’s how they explained it:

In this study, we surveyed Americans in every state to determine where residents are most and least guilty of committing naughty travel habits. We asked a variety of questions from which behaviors they are guilty of themselves, which behaviors they have witnessed while traveling, which behavior they consider the worst, and which airline they associate most with these behaviors.

Using the responses to the behaviors Americans are guilty of doing themselves, we awarded points and calculated an average score for each state. We then adjusted the scores on a scale of 0-100, with 100 representing the naughtiest travel habits. Finally, we ranked each state according to their Naughty Travel Habits Score.

The states with the most/least rude people at airports and on planes

These are the states (20 per category) that admitted to participating in inappropriate behavior at airports and on airplanes (Note: they didn’t specify if these numbers represent the most respondents who admitted to ANY of these behaviors, regardless of how many per individual, or that had, in total, the most people admitting they’ve done the most behaviors).

“Naughty” behaviors Americans admit to committing while at airports or on planes

These are the top 15 “universally disliked” airport and airplane behaviors that respondents admitted to committing:

1. Putting bag(s) on seats in terminal (51.40%)
2. Reclining seat without asking (38.31%)
3. Not putting phone on airplane mode (37.46%)
4. Passing gas in seat or cabin (32.72%) (yeah, it’s more than just 32.72%)
5. Leaving garbage in seat pocket (32.57%)
6. Asking to switch seats on plane (25.02%)
7. Lying down in terminal (23.63%)
8. Using both armrest if not in the middle seat (23.33%)
9. Hanging leg(s) in aisle (20.23%)
10. Ignoring seatbelt sign (18.93%)
11. Pushing on seat in front of them (11.19%)
12. Drinking too much (9.39%)
13. Wearing strong cologne or perfume (8.29%)
14. Going barefoot on plane (5.89%)
15. Bringing strong-smelling food on plane (5.54%)

“Naughty” behaviors Americans say they’ve seen others do while at airports or on planes

It’s not just if YOU’VE done it…it’s if you’ve seen OTHERS do it (and then, undoubtedly, judge them LOL)

1. Reclining seat without asking (75.47%)
2. Loud phone use in terminal (74.08%)
3. Putting bag(s) on seats in terminal (72.73%)
4. Leaving garbage in seat pocket (71.68%)
5. Asking to switch seats on plane (66.08%)
6. Pushing on seat in front of them (63.54%)
7. Lying down in terminal (63.14%)
8. Ignoring seatbelt sign (62.44%)
9. Hanging leg(s) in aisle (60.29%)
10. Using both armrests if not in the middle seat (58.79%)
11. Loud phone use on plane (55.00%)
12. Wearing strong cologne or perfume (50.00%)
13. Drinking too much (45.95%)
14. Having BO (44.86%)
15. Passing gas in seat or cabin (43.66%)
16. Bringing strong-smelling food on plane (41.21%)
17. Going barefoot on plane (40.41%)
18. Not putting phone on airplane mode (39.46%)
19. Verbal confrontation with others (37.16%)
20. Asking to cut in security line (34.57%)

Fun Facts!

The people who gathered the statistics for this survey added a few findings along the way, even though they didn’t show them anywhere else in their documentation:

• Americans are most likely to associate Spirit Airlines with naughty travel behaviors.
• Gen Zers are the most likely generation to commit “naughty” travel behaviors.
• Men are more likely than women to commit these naughty travel behaviors.
• “While only 8% of people say they have worn strong cologne or perfume, 1 in 2 people say they have smelled others wearing it.” They hypothesized that some travelers are simply unaware of the overusage of their own scent, even if they smell it on others.

Final thoughts

Although I found these statistics interesting, I dug waaaaaay deep into my mind, to remember what I learned from the Psychological Statistics class I took in college. With that in mind (get it? “In mind”), I have to admit that I question at least some of their validity.

• They never said how many people per state they surveyed. Was it 2 people per state? 20? 200? The number of respondents, 100 vs. 1000 vs. 10,000, will make a big difference in how accurately their numbers represent Chris Q. Public.
• Who were these people? Were they folks who traveled often? Once or twice a year? Once a decade? The less someone travels, the less opportunity they’re going to have to see others commit inappropriate behaviors or, for that matter, to commit them themselves.
• Regardless of what respondents said, who decided which activities were inappropriate, and when? I mean, putting bags on seats in the terminal is selfish when the terminal is full and there are people unable to find a chair. But if there’s plenty of empty space, I think it may be viewed less negatively, no? Also, there’s no rule that says you have to ask permission to recline your seat (and what are you going to do if the person behind you says, “No?” Then what?). Ignoring a seatbelt sign isn’t “rude” as much as “dangerous.” How is “not putting the phone on airplane mode” rude, and how did these respondents know others had or hadn’t done so? And asking to cut the security line – with the caveat that you’re in danger of missing your flight if you don’t – is generally acceptable.
• Their report mentioned asking respondents which inappropriate activities they thought were the worst (physical confrontations with others and masturbating on a plane were #1 and #2), but there’s no mention of the latter. Then again, I could see how “masturbating on a plane” would be low down on the list, but who’s going to admit they’ve done it?!?!?!

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