Flying

The most annoying thing passengers do on planes, allegedly, and what actually bugs crews

Here is the lavatory myth, the seat belt reality, and how not to be that passenger that drives the crew mad on flights.

Scottish journalist and lifelong sports fan who grew up in Edinburgh playing and following football (soccer), cricket, tennis, golf, hockey… Joined Diario AS in 2012, becoming Director of AS USA in 2016 where he leads teams covering soccer, American sports (particularly NFL, NBA and MLB) and all the biggest news from around the world of sport.

Update: Sep 27th, 2025 12:43 EDT

Articles about annoying things flyers do are pretty common, and for good reason—people love reading about the bad habits of other passengers.

Right now, a number of outlets are claiming the top in-flight annoyance for flight attendants is bad use of the lavatory door—either not locking it when someone is inside, or leaving it open once they’re finished.

We looked into it and the sourcing looks pretty iffy, the premise is shaky, and the reality is the indicator light does not work the way the stories suggest.

Meanwhile, crews keep flagging the same real offenders: people who ignore the seat belt sign, needless call-button bing-bonging, and grabby shoulder taps.

So here’s a quick guide to what really matters and what might just be headline bait.

Where the lavatory-door claim came from

U.K.-based tabloid the Mirror, the New York Post and Travel + Leisure all have pieces saying the most annoying thing passengers do is misuse the lav door, and all link to Alpine Elements, a U.K.-based ski travel company. The problem is they all link to the Alpine Elements home page, not a specific report. We hunted, but could not find an Alpine Elements article laying out the claim.

Who knows where the story started, but we can’t find an original, reported source with actual flight attendants saying this.

How the lavatory door and light actually work

First thing to note, the vacant/occupied indicator is tied to the lock, not to whether the door is open, closed, or half-ajar.

So if you don’t slide the lock while inside, the sign reads “vacant,” people try the handle, and everyone gets an awkward moment. In our experience this is not common, and even when it happens both the occupant and the would-be occupant get a shock, but it’s hardly annoying for the flight attendants. More likely, it’s mildly amusing if they see it.

When you unlock to leave, the sign flips to “vacant” before you even step out. So leaving the door open after you exit is not a lighting issue. It’s just not great manners, since it leaves the lavatory—and its odors—open to the cabin.

So what should you do? Lock it while you’re inside, then close the door behind you when you leave.

Overall, it’s fair to say crews can be annoyed by poor lavatory-door etiquette, but in all our time flying we’ve rarely seen anyone fail to work the lock.

What crews actually complain about

Roundups that talk to flight attendants tend to hit the same list. Two quick reads:

Newsweek on common crew pet peeves.

Business Insider’s compilation.

Here’s the greatest-hits version, in rough order of how much trouble it causes:

- Ignoring the seat belt sign

- Touching flight attendants to get attention

- Pressing the call button for non-urgent requests

- Playing musical chairs with seat assignments

- Leaving a mess

- Wearing headphones during beverage service

- Underestimating the role flight attendants play

- Getting impatient about trash pickup

- Failing to acknowledge flight attendants in conversation

The seat belt reality on planes

If there’s a single behavior that reliably draws a warning, it’s standing up when the sign is on—especially during taxi after landing. The sprint to the overhead bins while the plane is still moving is practically a ritual. A meltdown over a misused lav lock is less common. Does it happen? Sure. There are literal signs at IKEA telling people not to use the display toilets, so nothing surprises us anymore. But as “most annoying” goes, it’s a stretch.

How not to be that passenger

Lock the lav while you’re in there. Stay seated when the sign is on. Use the call button when you need real help. Keep your hands to yourself. Say please and thank you. You’ll be a hero to the aisle and invisible to the complaint list, which is exactly the point.