Facts and Myths about flying

1. OXYGEN MASKS

From the moment the oxygen masks fall down in an emergency, you only have 15 minutes of oxygen. Fortunately, the pilot can bring the plane to a lower altitude during that time so that you can just keep breathing.

2. ELECTRONIC DEVICES

Turning off your electronic devices is totally useless. They really won’t let the plane crash. Pilots can only get a fault if more than a hundred telephones try to pick up a signal.

3. STORM

Apparently airplanes are hit by lightning very often.

4. CHECKED BAGGAGE

You should be happy if your suitcase makes it to the baggage belt in one piece. If it says ‘fragile’, it is thrown harder. If it says ‘this side up’, then that side will definitely go down. There has to be so much baggage on an airplane and the employees only have a short time to do that: it has to fit. One way or another…

5. HEADPHONES

The headphones you get – neatly rolled up and wrapped in plastic – aren’t new. They are simply cleaned after use and recycled afterwards!

6. HYGIENE

Do you get a blanket and pillow during the flight? They are therefore not new and certainly not clean. They are simply refolded after a flight and put back in the bins above. Oh, and it seems that there is some leftover baby poo on every table. So never put food directly on your table, because this is never cleaned either.

7. ORGANS

Human remains also fly along during most flights.

8. ASHTRAYS

Why are there still ashtrays in the toilets? If you do smoke – even if it is forbidden – then rather throw your ashes there than in the trash.

9. PILOTS 1

Pilots have many rights once the aircraft doors are closed: they can refuse passengers (if they are difficult), they can arrest people and even issue fines.

10. PILOTS 2

Half of the pilots are asleep in flight and a third of them wake up to see their co-pilot asleep too.

11. PILOTS 3

During a flight pilots always get different food than the other. Sharing is prohibited. The reason? If one of them gets food poisoning, the other can just keep flying!

12. WATER 1

Never drink water that does not come from a bottle on the plane! Why? The exit of the toilet and the place where the water is replenished are roughly next to each other. Sometimes they are all served at the same time.

13. WATER 2

The drinking water that is used to make coffee and tea should not actually be used. Apparently the tanks are never cleaned. In many cases it is even the case that the inside turns green