Sometimes, the skies aren't so friendly and neither are your fellow passengers when you fly.
They can be rude and unruly, but you still need to get to your destination. What do you do when you're on the flight with some not-so-nice seatmates who cause a major ruckus?
Echo Garrett and her husband Kevin boarded their United flight from Phoenix, Arizona to Minneapolis, Minnesota, on their way to Atlanta, Georgia. Garrett's husband had hurt his back on their trip, so Echo purchased an upgrade to comfort class so he could have more room. They put his photography equipment in the overhead compartment and prepared to fly.
Unfortunately, the couple's experience was anything but comfortable.
"A passenger came running on at the last moment," explained Echo. "The flight attendant opened the closed overhead compartment, yanked Kevin's bag out and dropped it on the floor. It was quite heavy because it contained several thousand dollars' worth of camera gear."
Kevin got out of his seat and questioned the flight attendant in a calm, non-threatening voice. The flight attendant threatened to have him thrown off the plane.
"He returned to his seat and whispered to me, 'What a witch,'" said Echo.
A second flight attendant appeared immediately and said, "I heard you call her a curse word and one more word from you and you will be off this flight."
The couple in front of them also cranked their seats so far back that they were practically in their laps.
"They kept ordering drinks and trying to engage us in conversation," said Echo. "It was one of our worst experiences ever."
When Jen Singer's plane was landing in Toronto, a lightning storm kept the passengers stranded on the tarmac.
"The two-year-old next to me had been sleeping, but woke up as we stopped," said Singer. "His dad had said he was a pretty good toddler and was potty trained. I let the boy sit on my lap while I pointed out all the trucks and planes. Then I felt a warmth on my lap. Yup, he peed on me. Six hours later, I told the story on national TV as I spoke about potty training."
Patti McCracken's flight Frankfurt to Bangkok became quite foul-smelling.
"Two empty seats between me and another passenger, a very tall man," said McCracken. "After dinner, I closed my eyes. I started to smell something and opened my eyes to find tall man's stinky feet on my tray table with shoes off. I began to curse at him. The flight attendant came to see what all the yelling was about and she ordered him to remove his feet immediately, whereupon he shoved them down into the seat beside me, against the armrest.
"It was a long flight."
Underwood said to choose words that make him/her sympathetic to what he/she is doing to you, get him/her on your side while asking to help you.
"It probably will help if you can strike up a brief and friendly conversation before you come back to him with your complaint," Underwood noted. "Maybe it's just a brief greeting: 'Hi. Are you heading home, or outbound?'"
According to Kelly Ortiz-Elgin of Guru Travel in Elgin, Illinois, staying calm starts with staying prepared.
"I bring earbuds. Not just any buds: good ones. These little fellas have the power to cancel out a lot of sounds. I also swear by Lavender Roll on Essential Oil so that I can give it a roll in the event of an extra stressful flight, such as a rude seatmate. Finally, download your favorite shows, music, podcasts, books etc. Keep yourself occupied. Between the earbuds and your technology, you should be able to be in your own little world of magic."
You'll never be able to eliminate all potentially unruly passengers, but at least now you have a starting point to get you through the rough flights.
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