A flight attendant has shared the reasons why you should never wear shorts on a plane – and it’s all to do with the cleanliness of the seats and the exposing nature of the item of clothing
A flight attendant has warned passengers that wearing shorts on an aircraft is a dirty habit that should be avoided at all costs, particularly if you’re looking to dodge a germ-infested experience.
While shorts might seem like the perfect attire to kickstart your holiday in sunny climes, Tommy Cimato, a seasoned cabin crew member, insists it’s actually an invitation to bacteria city. The flight attendant laid bare the realities of plane hygiene, drawing parallels between resting your head against the aeroplane window and donning shorts for your journey.
Tommy clarified his stance: “Do not fall asleep or lean your head on the window. You are not the only one that has done that and you don’t know how many people or children have wiped their hands or other things all over the window. It’s the same thing as the window, you never know how clean it’s going to be, so if you have pants, you’re going to have less germs.”
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Tommy argues that by opting for long trousers over shorts, flyers can avoid direct contact with the seat and thus stand a better chance against onboard bacteria. Even though our skin is adept at repelling unwanted microscopic stowaways, it doesn’t rule out the risks, especially if those germs make their way from dirty surfaces into our mouths.
Highlighting another hotspot for nasties, the cabin crew member strongly advised against directly touching the flush button in the plane’s lavatory, citing it as one the most unhygienic points on the aircraft. He remarked: “Do not ever touch the flush button with your bare hands. It’s honestly just super unsanitary and pretty gross, so when you flush, use a napkin or tissue that’s in the lavatory.”
For those feeling under the weather during a flight, he urged them to inform the crew instead of suffering in silence. He suggested: “Don’t feel afraid. So if you need food, water or an air sickness bag, please feel free to let us know,” the cabin crew member said.
American air stewardess Jamila Hardwick recently appeared on Inside Edition and disclosed that certain areas of the plane, including tray tables, are seldom cleaned. She said: “Oh my gosh, this is disgusting. When cleaners come on they don’t have time to wipe down every individual tray.”
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A 2019 study by Insurancequotes.com revealed that a tray table can harbour an average of 11.595 germ colony-forming units, which passengers would do well to avoid. During the Covid pandemic, airlines implemented stringent health and cleanliness protocols, which involved sanitising the aircraft before and after each journey.
Travellers are recommended to use antibacterial wipes to clean their tray table before eating, particularly following the circulation of images showing passengers using the plane’s tray tables as footrests, some without any footwear.
An Instagram user, alleging to be part of the cabin crew, weighed in on an image stating: “As a flight attendant, I always tell people to take their feet off the table. I say it very nicely. Most comply.
“I say it breaks the table, etc but really I think it’s so disgusting and tacky. What are they going to do? Write a letter about me saying she made me take my feet off the table? Never. Some flight attendants don’t care but I try to keep some kind of civility at work, but it’s a tiresome battle.”
