8 Airline Secrets They Hope You Never Find Out

Today's video breaks down airline secrets that they do not want you to know. The first secret is that those pre-flight rituals actually have hidden purposes. Every frequent flyer knows the drill as soon as the crew starts preparing for takeoff, which means putting window shades up, stowing tray tables, keeping seat backs upright, sliding bags under the seat, and dimming the cabin lights. But here's what they don't tell you. None of that is random. Those window shades must be open so the crew can quickly spot smoke, fire, or debris outside if there's a problem, and emergency responders need to see inside the plane from the outside. You're also asked to put your tray tables up and stow your bag under the seat in front of you so nothing blocks the aisle or makes it more difficult to evacuate during an emergency. And those dimmed lights are getting your eyes adjusted to darkness in case you need to evacuate in the dark. Here's a comfort trick I learned from a flight attendant. After takeoff, you can actually pull your bag back from under the seat and tuck it behind your legs for extra foot space without breaking any rules. This ends up freeing up so much leg room on a flight, and I swear, every single time, as soon as I do it, I look around and the other passengers catch on and end up doing the same thing. It's a really good tip. And look above your head next time you board. See that small metal rail under the overhead bins? Those are hidden handrails so crew can walk safely during turbulence. And you can use them too when the seatbelt signs off instead of grabbing headrests and accidentally pulling someone's hair. The next secret is that where you sit actually matters more than you think. Here's something airlines would never tell you during their upselling pitch. The middle seat in the very back row statistically has the highest survival rate in a crash. That said, it's also the least comfortable place to spend six hours of your life. So it's really a personal choice between comfort and that extra safety margin. The truth is that every seat is going to have its pros and its cons. Except for those middle seats, I think they are only cons. And the best seat for you is going to be the one that matches your preferences. I personally love sitting in the aisle on a long-haul flight since I like to get up a lot. And if it's a short flight, an hour or less, I will sit by the window. I like the view and I like not having to get up. The front of the cabin gets you quieter flights and faster exits. Sitting over the wings gives you the most stable ride because that's the aircraft's center of lift. And those back rows everyone avoids often get better service and faster drink refills. Another airline secret is the safety habits pilots swear by. A pilot once told me this trick that could save your life. Before takeoff, count the number of rows to your nearest exit both forward and back. If the cabin fills with smoke during an emergency, you won't be able to see the exit signs. But you'll know exactly when to turn based on counting seat rows. And always double check that your life vest is actually under your seat. Believe it or not, some of these will go missing as souvenirs. Which is highly illegal, so don't even think about it. By law, every seat should have one. And if yours is missing, tell a flight attendant immediately. Those seat cushions also double as flotation devices, which is a pretty clever backup plan. Even your seatbelt is smarter than it looks. The reason to keep it on isn't normal turbulence that you can see coming. It's clear air turbulence, which is invisible and completely unpredictable and can throw people and service carts to the ceiling without any warning. What's the strangest secret that you have ever discovered on your own travels? It would be awesome if you let us know down in the video comments as I love reading your stories and I'm pretty sure everyone else down in the comment section is going to want to read them too. The next secret is the hidden language of airplane chimes. Those little dings and chimes you hear aren't random. They're actually how pilots and crew communicate without using the PA system and freaking everyone out. One chime usually means a passenger pressed their call button. Two chimes typically signal takeoff or landing clearance between the cockpit and crew. And three chimes often mean a turbulence warning or priority message that the crew needs to prepare for. If you suddenly hear a lot of chimes at once, that's your clue the crew is getting a heads up before you feel whatever's coming. And one of my other favorite not-so-secret secrets is that today's video partner, Unbound Merino, has some of the best clothing for travelers on the market. Unbound Merino has a wide range of stylish merino wool clothing for both men and women designed specifically for travelers. Their merino wool regulates your temperature by being breathable when it's hot and insulating when it's cold. Yep, seriously, it does both. Their best-selling t-shirts are definitely a favorite in my house because they're practical, flattering, and genuinely comfortable. They look so good. If your partner is a man, get them for him. If you are a man, get them for yourself. Trust me. I actually bought my partner the men's three-pack discount bundle and ended up keeping one for myself. I fell in love with the purple they rolled out for men and I've basically been living in it here in Thailand. It's been perfect for sun protection without leaving me overheated. I'm obsessed. Use the link in the description to check out Unbound Merino and save 10% on your order with the code MEGAN10. Here's a secret that might surprise you. Flying is way safer than you think. Your odds of dying in a plane crash are 1 in 11 million compared to 1 in 5,000 for a car accident. Yep, you heard that right. It turns out that getting to the airport is literally going to be the riskiest part of taking a flight. When something does go wrong, it's usually during takeoff or landing, which is why all those safety steps actually matter. It's also why those oxygen masks only give you about 12 to 15 minutes of air. That's just enough time for the pilots to drop the plane to a safe altitude where you can breathe normally again. The next secret is the gross truth about airplane cleanliness. If there's one real risk in flying, it's getting sick from all the germs since planes turn around fast with limited time for deep cleaning. To protect yourself, wipe down your area with sanitizing wipes, angle your air vent slightly in front of you to keep air moving around your space, and sanitize your hands like you're prepping for surgery. The tray table and seatback touchscreen are usually dirtier than the bathroom. Those pillows and blankets are often reused unless they're sealed in plastic and those little droplets on the lavatory floor. Well, they're not always water, so keep your shoes on. It's also now been banned on many airlines to go barefoot, so that's another reason, if you needed one, to keep your shoes on. Here are some other fun bathroom facts. Every lavatory door can be unlocked from the outside by flipping up the lavatory sign to find the hidden latch, and ashtrays are still required by law in airplane bathrooms in case someone lights up illegally because it's safer to have a place to stub it out than risk a trash can fire. Another airline secret is why food tastes different at altitude. The food served in the cabin is designed for taste buds that are basically half asleep since your ability to taste salt and sugar drops by about 30% at altitude, so airline meals are packed with extra sodium and fat just to taste normal to your dulled senses. That's also why tomato juice and Bloody Marys taste amazing in the air. The loud cabin noise actually enhances umami flavor, making tomatoes taste richer and more savory. And because cabin pressure is lower than ground level, gas inside your stomach expands, which leads to an uncomfortable truth. This has to be the least glamorous, not-so-secret secret of all. Plane farts. They happen. A lot. Airlines also don't want you to know that airplane food is one of the easiest things to mess up. Meals are cooked in massive batches on the ground, then chilled, stored, transported, and reheated only once on board. With that many steps, there's very little room for error. If the temperature slips at any point, the food can spoil, which is why strict safety rules exist, and why one small mistake can affect hundreds of meals at once. Pilots are actually required by regulation to eat different meals from each other to avoid both getting food poisoning from the same dish, but passengers aren't warned about that risk. But while airplane food might not be the healthiest thing in the world with all that extra sodium and fat, it's probably not going to make you sick or show up expired. An American passenger on an Air Canada flight last month actually went viral for claiming her meal was six months old, but she was just reading the date the American way. I've personally never been sick from eating plane food. I actually quite enjoy it. But the most sick that I ever was was actually eating at the United Lounge in Newark Airport right before I boarded a flight to Japan. By far the worst flight of my life. I spent most of the flight in the fetal position on the bathroom floor. And given what I shared earlier about those plane bathrooms, you know that this is not the place I want it to be. Not at all. The final secret is that flight attendants are secretly ninjas. They're trained to handle everything from fires and medical emergencies to completely out of control passengers. I was blown away after spending time at the Emirates training facility in Dubai and seeing what it really takes to become a flight attendant. This training facility was an eye-opening experience. They had everything from hair and makeup lessons to how to detain a crazy passenger with handcuffs. After unruly passenger incidents spiked in recent years, the FAA went zero tolerance with fines, prosecution, and no warnings for bad behavior. De-escalation is always the first goal, but every plane carries a restraint kit with everything from zip ties to duct tape to real handcuffs. And some airlines even train their crew in martial arts. Flight attendants can do a heck of a lot more than you think. They're pretty cool. Treat them well. And here's something that might surprise you. All that calm professionalism you see during boarding is actually unpaid time since most flight attendants don't start getting paid until the doors close and the plane pushes back from the gate. Airplanes are full of weird little secrets, from the handrails above your head to the secret language of chimes. If you take anything away from this video, just remember that every rule and every routine has its purpose, even if it's not immediately obvious. If you like this video, you'll love this one where I break down wild airport secrets. I'll put it on the screen now and link it in the description for you to watch next. And if you enjoy videos like this one, then definitely hit that subscribe button so you never miss another video. And it's also a free way to support the channel. So, Ollie and I, that's Ollie, definitely appreciate it. He might not seem excited, but trust me, he's excited.