What to do if you’re sat next to ‘the worst passenger on the plane’ this summer

A TRAVEL expert has revealed what passengers should do if they end up sitting next to someone who is very drunk on a flight.

Dealing with other passengers is arguably one of the most stressful parts of air travel, particularly if they’ve had a lot to drink.

That’s exactly what happened to one person recently, who ended up next to a drunk woman who behaved badly during their trip.

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The passenger reached out to travel publication Afar to ask what she could’ve done.

She recalled how the woman next to her had drunk “eight little bottles of vodka” before she “loudly made fun of nearby passengers and pretended to talk on the phone”.

She also tried to “snuggle” with her, and “spilled half a bottle of water” on her jeans.

She claimed that she thought the flight attendants should have cut her off and stopped her from drinking any more.

Afar’s recommendation was to reach out to the cabin crew and explain the situation.

However their resident etiquette expert Dr. Anu Taranath said that flight attendants won’t always stop people drinking if it stops them getting angry.

She wrote: “Though flight crews have more authority than passengers when it comes to quelling bad behaviour, they too are limited in what they can do.

“Let’s say they had cut off the passenger’s alcohol supply earlier. Though that might have encouraged her to sober up, flight attendants say it usually does not go well. 

“It’s possible the flight crew was choosing among the best of a set of imperfect choices in continuing to quietly serve her.”

Flight attendants agree that passengers who’ve had a lot to drink can be awful to sit next to.

Lucia Taboada, who has been flying for almost 20 years, told the Express drunk passengers are “the worst kind” of people.

Sun Online Travel’s resident flight attendant said passengers should alert their cabin crew if a tipsy person is annoying them.

They said: “Sometimes it can be a bit too much and it’s hard for some passengers to understand why we have to draw a line.

“You just don’t know how people react with alcohol in that situation.

“People of course are entitled to have a bit of fun – it’s always five o’clock in the air some say – but it’s a very dangerous operation that we’re handling and it’s bad when people just don’t understand that.

“If you’re going to have a drink on your next flight, please think about how it could affect you because it’s us that will have to deal with it if you don’t – and we can’t look after absolutely everyone in an emergency, it’s just not possible.

“Also, people travel for all sorts of reasons, including the deaths of loved ones, family emergencies, business and other situations – those people aren’t likely to be in the mood to join your party.

“Your inconsiderate behaviour could make an already tough experience much worse and much more difficult to deal with.”

Meanwhile, this flight attendant revealed how to get extra free drinks while on a flight.

And another explained how to get drinks that aren’t on the menu.

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