It's so amazing that the world is opening up and we can travel again!
But there's only one problem...We're not at the point yet where we can hop on a magic carpet or teleport to our destination, so unfortunately, our only option is still getting on a goddamn airplane.
There are a couple things you can control on your flight. For example, packing a sweatshirt to prevent freezing to death once the AC kicks in or choosing a seat that's far away from the bathroom. But the one thing that's totally out of your hands is the people who sit near you. Here are 27 individuals who gave folks the flight from hell:
2. This person was far from subtle about breaking the rules:
A woman smoked weed in the airplane bathroom on my flight to LA today and when the smoke alarm went off, she flung the door open and tried... to run down the aisle... with the flight attendant calmly pursuing her, repeating "ma'am, we all saw you. And we smelled you."
4. This woman nearly knocked a child out with her perfume (and scarred them for life):
"When I was 10 or 11 years old, I went on a nine-hour flight and had the middle seat. A woman sat in the window seat and had a horrendous smelling perfume on; the kind that gives you a headache in the first 10 minutes. She went to the restroom and re-applied her perfume every couple of hours. The smell, plus turbulence, was enough for me to throw up for the duration of the flight. For years after, I was so scarred that I took motion sickness pills every flight — only to realize I didn’t have motion sickness; it was just that woman’s horrible perfume."
5. These people clearly didn't know how babies work:
I was once on a plane with three crying babies and the most annoying people on the flight were the couple in their 60s next to me who performatively put their fingers in their ears the entire time.
7. This person tried to start shit, but just plain embarrassed themselves:
grown man next to me on my flight whispered “mask nazi” at the little flight attendant, she heard him and asked him to repeat himself and he got scared and said “uh..uh..nothing” lol these people are the biggest babies alive
9. This person spilled beverages like their life depended on it:
"We ran into one of our neighbors on a flight going home. He was put next to an old lady who used him as a pillow, ordered a Coke and spilled it on him, then got coffee and spilled it again! And then, another coffee and spilled it on him again! He flipped out and was moved into our seat row."
12. These people made sure to give this poor man the worst overseas flight of his life:
"On a 12+ hour flight, I was in the middle aisle. The seat recliner was broken, the guy next to me took his shoes off and his feet stank, the woman to my left spilled orange juice on me, and the headphone plug for the in-flight entertainment was broken. I did get extra potato chips as a compensation for the seat problem, though 🙄."
14. This person's "emotional support animal" was a total terror:
"I was seated next to a woman with an 'emotional support animal.' If I had to guess, it was a pug chihuahua mix. Whatever it was, it was small enough for her to keep on her lap. Apparently, the dog needed its own emotional support animal, because it was a wreck. It kept standing up, whining, and shit on her lap. It would also leak piss anytime someone walked by. The smell 🤢."
15. This person really needed to grow the hell up:
today an adult man nearly needed to be restrained on my flight because he wouldn’t put away his 27 inch gaming laptop because he was “in the middle of a boss fight”
17. This person made sure their seat-mate had just as stressful of a flying experience as they did:
"I sat next to someone who had a phobia of flying. They spent the flight in terror and described to me everything that could go wrong with the plane, and what would happen to us if it did. By the time I got off the flight, I was a nervous flier. Fear can be contagious."
19. This person was possibly a zombie:
person next to me on my flight sat eyes open doing nothing for two hours, don’t know whether to be impressed or afraid
20. This person spread their underwear fumes across the whole flight:
21. This person had an odd way of flirting:
"I got my window seat in the small plane for my one-hour flight and got comfortable. A short, but built guy took the seat next to me and man-spread not only into my foot, but ALSO over into my chair. Literally calf to calf, thigh to thigh with me. I went to automatically flinch away from touching a STRANGER, but I realized that I was way within my seat, and if I moved over, he'd get, like, £40 of my ridiculously expensive seat. So I didn't move. But then, he didn't move either? I am British, so I didn't say anything and just quietly seethed in my seat for the hour...
"...When it's time to land, I like to look over to see the sky disappear and the land take up the full window. So I look to the other side of the aisle to watch, and out the corner of my eye, I see he thinks I'm trying to look at him, and he SMILES!?! As though I've been secretly enjoying him getting all up and cozy on MY SEAT on a Thursday afternoon business flight. I was SO MAD and continued to ignore him and seethe. I met my husband at the gate, and I bitched about this guy LOUDLY all the way to the parking pay station, culminating in a comprehensive and curse-filled conclusion on why he was a fucking creepy little shit and why some people shouldn't be allowed on public transport. I turned around, and he was paying for parking at the next pay point looking very red and determinedly not making eye contact. No regrets. Fuck that guy. Stay in your own seat."
22. This person knowingly flew with COVID:
I’d like to report a felony on my flight
In case you can't see it, her text says, "We have Covid...shhh. That's why we're coming home a day early. On the plane now."
23. This person treated their seat area like a public restroom:
"The mom in front of me had to change her baby's diaper around hour three, but the lavatory was occupied. So she returned to the seat and changed the baby on the seat-back tray table. Absolutely disgusting."
24. This person wasted no time in being condescending and misogynistic:
Some dude on my flight just tried to shame me for writing YA—said he was in town speaking at the real literary festival—you know, for adults. The look on his face as my chauffeur opened my door and said, Welcome Ms. Liggett—now that was priceless.
26. This person was everyone on the flight's arch nemesis:
dude on my flight walked into the bathroom without shoes on sometimes “first class” is a misnomer
27. And finally, this person released their bowels on a flight that lasted nearly an entire day:
"A guy sitting next to me shat himself between Dallas and Doha (an 18-hour flight)."
Do you have any airplane seat-mate horror stories? Tell us in the comments for a chance to be featured in a BuzzFeed Community post!
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.