There’s nothing worse than feeling confined on a long-haul flight, but one cabin crew member has shared a little-known trick to secure extra space on nearly every plane
As the summer holiday countdown begins, one flight attendant has revealed a little-known button that will almost always guarantee you extra room on a flight.
It comes as no surprise that 56 percent of passengers get irked by the lack of legroom, while 46 percent grow frustrated when flyers recline their seats back, a Busbud survey found.
So, if your aisle seating conditions are confined during your next long-haul flight, cabin crew member Charlie Silver has shared one very helpful hack. Taking to TikTok, the TUI flight attendant said: “Are you sitting on the aisle seat, wondering why your armrest doesn’t go up? Well, here’s a little hack for you.”
The flying expert then pressed a switch-like button that is located underneath the arm rest, at the far back. “Press this little hidden button and your armrest will move freely up and down,” Charlie explained.
She concluded: “This video is for people who didn’t know that the aisle seat armrest moves too, it’s like this on most aircraft types.” Impressed followers flocked to the comments, as one penned: “I wish I knew this three months ago, when I had six flights when I went to South Africa.”
Another shared: “Game changer! I’m flying to Cape Verde next week and I’m in the aisle seat.” A third posted: “Not on every aircraft though.” To which Charlie responded with: “I’ve flown on a 737, 787, 767, 321, 330 and 350 and they have all done this.”
She added that the clever hack also works on Jet2 planes, but the button can be slightly stiffer on the Dreamliner. Meanwhile, aviation expert Asif Malik explained that the armrests are fixed in place for safety reasons, as they act as a barrier between passengers and the aisle. He wrote on Quora: “This can help prevent accidents and injuries during turbulence or emergency situations.”
The plane guru highlighted that passengers may be tempted to extend their arms into the aisle, which can increase the risk of accidents. It’s important to note that armrests should be lowered during takeoff and landing for safety reasons.
This comes as we asked Mirror readers to vote for their favourite seat on a plane, and a whopping 51 percent said the aisle is best. Around 46 percent favour the window seat, while only three percent admit they opt for the middle.
Travelling in between two strangers for hours makes the middle seat an unpopular choice for many flyers, but there is an unwritten etiquette that the these passengers have priority of both armrests.
One cabin crew member explained: “If I could give an airline-etiquette PSA, I’d say I wish more passengers knew middle seat armrests are for the middle seat passenger — both of them.”
