by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:30 AM ET, Tue January 17, 2017
On Tuesday, Expedia.com released the results of its Airplane Etiquette Study, which identifies passenger behaviors that most infuriate fellow travelers.
More than anything else, the study found rear-seat kicking as the most infuriating behavior.
The study was commissioned by Expedia, conducted by market research company GfK and surveyed 1,005 Americans 18 years old and older. In addition to rear-seat kicking, passengers also complained about boozing, excessive chatting, undressing and inattentive parenting.
"As we embark on 2017, millions and millions of people will be taking to the air this year, and should know that there's no better gift you can give to a fellow traveler than respect and generosity," Expedia general manager John Morrey. "The Airplane Etiquette study shows that small acts of decorum can go a long way. After all, as it relates to flights, we are quite literally all in this together."
Of the maddening passenger behaviors, 64 percent of responders identified rear-seat kicking as the most annoying trait of fellow travelers. In a close second place, 59 percent of travelers cited inattentive parenting-defined as parents who have no control over (or pay no attention to) their crying, whining or misbehaved children-as a massive problem.
As for the third and fourth most disliked passenger traits, aromatic passengers-defined as those with poor hygiene or those wearing excessive cologne or perfume-bugged 55 percent of responders, and audio insensitive passengers-those who talk loudly or listen to loud music-aggravated 49 percent of fliers.
Another major disruptor is the drunk passenger, which 49 percent said was annoying, but the study also found that only 12 percent of Americans said they drink more than two alcoholic beverages on their flights.
A major point of contention discovered in the survey is the divide between passengers on whether or not to recline seats. While 53 percent of Americans recline their seats when flying, another 35 percent dislike passengers recline their seats fully.
[READMORE] READ MORE: easyJet Actually Fired A Flight Attendant Over a Bacon Sandwich[/READMORE]
All hope is not lost, though, as 79 percent of responders felt that "for the most part, fellow passengers are considerate of one another." Another 74 percent clean up their area of the plane before leaving and four in 10 fliers report having helped another passenger with luggage.
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