upworthy

flights

Images via Canva and Wikicommons

Justin Timberlake was ready to make every seat first class

Imagine you're on a flight to Argentina, getting settled into your seat and preparing for a boring (albeit important) safety rule announcement. Suddenly, a familiar voice pops up on the overhead speakers and you think… "Wait… that's not… could that be?" Why yes, it isJustin Timberlake, and he's ready to give you safety instructions and the flight route, usually delivered by the pilot.

Timberlake is continuing his "The Forget Tomorrow World Tour", his first world tour in five years. Of course, he's playing lots of hits, but the tour is to support his latest album Everything I Thought it Was, his sixth studio record.

On Justin's TikTok, posted on March 19th, we see him clad in a mint green hoodie with splashes of orange and darker green print, baggy trousers, and sneakers. He takes to the flight attendant's interphone with a sheet of instructions and begins: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to JT Live South American Leg."

@justintimberlake

South America, we’re coming for you!

The phone camera pans to the somewhat attentive, though possibly confused, rows of passengers and a flash of his name on the back of a seat. He continues while the flight attendants demonstrate how to use the life jackets, "The lifejacket is located in the pouch at the side of your seat. To inflate the lifejacket, pull firmly on the red toggles. If you have any questions, please keep them to yourselves."

This gets only a small laugh, so he verifies, "Oh, we're just kidding. Please ask the crew."

He then proceeds to share the flight path. "We will be flying over the beautiful countries of the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, until we make our way into Argentina." Adding, "We thank you for flying JT Live 25 Air — it’s gonna be lit."

This is met by clapping and cheers from many passengers, though others remain seemingly disinterested.

The TikTok comments, however, were filled with true fans. "You know what? There's nothing he can't do," says one. Another exclaims, "I'd give anything to be on that plane with him."

And this person hopes it means that Justin is adding something new to his already full career plate: "OK, so this is a preview of you narrating audiobooks for us, am I right? Please say I’m right!"

But there's more. Whether the reactions were good or indifferent on the actual flight didn't stop Justin from having a blast. At one point, he decides to use the aisle as his own personal putting green. With his putter, he gently hits a golf ball down the aisle, then excitedly takes a back-and-forth victory run, high-fiving some people on the way.

This was also shared on Justin's TikTok, underscored by a recording of the "Better than Most" PGA commentary when Tiger Woods famously made a 60-foot putt at TPC Sawgrass.

@justintimberlake

We love you, Big 🐅!!! Get well soon!

We hear, "I have seen a number of players putt from the back of this green. And the results have not been good." Justin takes the shot, then runs the aisle, and we hear, "Well, that's better than most. Better than most! You could hit that putt 50 times, and maybe make it once."

Adam Sandler Golf GIFGiphy

Again, the comment section blew up. "Imagine tryna nap on your flight and wake up to JT playing golf." And yet another suggestion for Justin's career? "JT needs to make a Happy Gilmore 2 cameo!"

Joy

The 'middle seat rule' and other unspoken airplane etiquette passengers should know

How are people who don't travel frequently supposed to know these things?

Avoid common faux pas on airplanes with these unwritten rules.

When you fly on an airplane, you agree to abide the passenger rules set by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), even if you don't know what all of them are. If a crew member catches you breaking an FAA rule, they will definitely let you know. But there are other "rules" of airline travel, largely unspoken and unwritten, that people who fly frequently abide by as well. If you don't travel a lot, you may not be aware of these rules, and it's not likely that someone will tell you if you break them, but knowing them makes air travel much more pleasant for everyone.

The middle seat rule

Most people have a preference for which seat they prefer—window, middle or aisle—with almost no one preferring to sit in the middle. (According to a survey from Going, 53% of people prefer the window seat, 46% prefer the aisle and a whopping 1% want the middle seat.) The window seat gets the views and control of the window shade and the aisle seat gets extra elbow room and controls when the row exits, but the middle seat only seems to come with down sides. Since the middle seat is basically the booby prize of air travel, the person who occupies it deserves to have at least one perk—control over the middle armrests.

empty row of airplane seatsThose two middle armrests go to the middle seat occupant.Photo credit: Canva

The middle seat rule means that the aisle and window seat occupants let person in the middle seat use the two middle armrests. What else do those poor souls have, really?

The rules of reclining

Few airline etiquette topics are more contentious than the "right to recline." The vast majority of economy airline seats have a button that allows the seat back to recline a few inches, but whether or not you should use it is a question without a clear answer. It's become even more of a question mark in the era of ever-shrinking legroom, with passengers fighting for every inch of space they can get.

Though people have strong opinions one way or the other, the general consensus for reclining "rules" seems to be that the courteous thing to do is 1) alert the person behind you that you want to recline, 2) don't recline during a meal, 3) avoid reclining on short-haul flights, 4) don't recline on someone who is using a laptop, and 5) when you do recline, ease the seat back slowly.

The headphones rule

There are actually two rules when it comes to headphones: 1) Wear them if you're watching or listening to something. No one wants to hear whatever you're watching or listening to. And 2) If someone's wearing headphones, don't try to chat them up.

woman wearing earbudsDon't talk to people wearing headphones or earbuds unless you really have to.Photo credit: Canva

Some people are airplane talkers and some aren't, but headphones a surefire way to signal that you're not up for chatting with strangers. If someone is wearing headphones or earbuds, that's a clear "please don't talk to me" sign, so unless there's something you really have to ask or tell someone wearing them, leave them to themselves.

The headrest rule

We all know getting in and out of the middle or window seats to go to the restroom can be a challenge, but if at all possible, try to avoid grabbing onto the headrests of the seats in front of you for leverage. It's better to move more slowly to climb your way across the seats than to seize someone's headrest like it's a grab bar. If you've ever tried to nap on a plane and had your headrest yanked suddenly with someone's full body weight, you understand this rule first hand.

The rules of deplaning

Getting onto a flight is a pretty orderly process since there are assigned seats and boarding groups and whatnot. But getting off the plane is another story. As soon as the plane parks at the gate and the seatbelt sign is turned off, it feels like the whole plane collectively thinks they'll just be able to stand up and walk off, but that's not how it works.

people sitting on an airplaneSit tight until the plane doors open and the front rows start emptying.Photo credit: Canva

First of all, it takes several minutes to get the plane doors ready to open, so standing up and filing into the aisle is a fairly useless practice (which also tends to make people feel a bit impatient). Sitting tight until the first people start actually deplaning keeps things a bit more relaxed.

But more importantly, some people seem to think deplaning is a free-for-all, with whoever can make it into the aisle with their luggage first taking priority, but that's not how it works. Emptying the plane row by row from the front to the back is The Way, so waiting patiently until the rows in front of you empty before filing out makes deplaning more efficient and less hectic.

Most unspoken rules, on airplanes or elsewhere, are based on common sense and/or courtesy. But since air travel comes with its own unique peculiarities, what's sensible or courteous may not be obvious, so it helps to have those rules explained. When everyone on the plane is on the same page, it makes for a much more pleasant travel experience for all.

Yes. Sometimes it really is that easy.

Sure, there are parents out there who essentially see the entire world as their kid’s playground, but by and large most parents really don’t want to subject anyone else to the whims of their little ones. This goes for flights too. When a baby or toddler can’t sit still or won’t stop crying, it’s also incredibly stressful for the parents doing their best to keep things calm while essentially becoming in-flight pariahs. Fun.

In other words, a little empathy can go a long way. And that’s why so many are applauding a now-viral TikTok from Samantha Chadwick (@samanthachadwickk), which shows exactly how powerful a simple mindset shift can be.

In the clip we see Chadwick in her airplane seat, headphones on, as the onscreen text reads:

“There’s a baby on my flight that’s been crying non-stop for like two hours. She sounds so uncomfortable, and her parents are working so hard to calm her down. They are probably feeling so much anxiety and pressure right now. People behind them are talking about the baby screaming. So instead of complaining, I just put on my headphones and watched my show & could barely hear her. It’s that easy.”

TLDR: Babies cry. Parents are trying. Thank God for headphones. Keep on keepin’ on.

@samanthachadwickk Lets normalize being good humans while traveling 🫶🏼 #babycrying #babytravel #travel ♬ Use this sound to go viral - Andrew

Chadwick’s message clearly struck a chord with parents who have been in similar circumstances. Many had also been on the receiving end of kindness from strangers, and it was everything.

“As a mom THANK YOU the anxiety you get when your baby cries in places like that is through the roof.”

“My baby screamed for over an hour on a flight, I tried everything to calm him down and felt terrible. as a man was getting off he stopped and told me I did a great job. It really meant the world.”

“I wish EVERYONE was this kind. I ‘ll never forget my baby crying for an entire 6 hour flight after we got stuck in Vegas and I was exhausted and stressed and multiple sweet angels offered to hold my baby.”

Others could agree with Chadwick’s sentiments exactly.

“Those poor parents. Thank you for handling it like an adult.”

“I always feel bad for the parents, so stressful.”

Others echoed the notion that, unlike the parents actually dealing with the crying child, there are some things the other person can control.

“I am SO sensitive to sounds and get incredibly irritable about them. I bring earplugs/headphones bc that’s MY problem. I don’t understand ppl who try to blame others for their issues.”

“I always say as adults we have the option to wear headphones, that baby and parents are suffering more than anyone else on the plane!”

Listen, it’s understandable that people’s fuses have gotten shorter while traveling because, let’s face it, there’s a lot of questionable choices being made these days, and being cramped together in a steel box thousands of feet in the air only makes it more intolerable. But families have also been put through the ringer several times even before boarding the plane and would like a nice, peaceful flight as much as everyone else. We might not like the hand we’re dealt by the flights gods that day, but for those some odd hours, we’re all in this together. So let’s do our part.

Or as Chadwick put it, “Let’s normalize being good humans while traveling.”

A flight attendant sits in first class.


How are some people able to upgrade from economy to first class on a commercial air flight? A flight attendant who goes by the name of Cierra Mistt on TikTok recently shared the secrets in a viral video.

According to the Salt Lake City-based flight attendant, there are two ways to get into first class for free. One tactic is for overbooked flights, and the other is for flights with a lot of empty seats.


1. Not-full flight: Sit in the very last row


"On flights that aren't full, we normally have to move passengers for weight and balance purposes, and when we do that, it's normally from back to front. If that's the case, the flight attendants are going to move people from the very last row to the front so that they can sit down there after doing their service because it's a lot more comfy to sit in those passenger seats than it is in the jump seat,” Misty reveals.


You will know you are on an overbooked flight if the flight attendant announces they are compensating passengers to change their booking. If you're interested, Misty advises that you don't take their initial offer but make your own demands. She swears it works nearly every time.

"First, go to the gate agent. Second, give them a price and say that you want that in cash," [name said]. "When the gate agent is rebooking you for that next flight, make sure that they put you in first class to compensate for the time that you're losing because you had to get kicked from that flight. Over 99% of the time this works."

Man walks to his seat on an airplaneman holding bags inside planePhoto by lutfi gaos on Unsplash

2. Overbooked flight: Name your price

@cierra_mistt

flight attendant secrets- how to get FREE upgrades to FIRST CLASS (p 1) ✈️

This article originally appeared on 4.6.24