The common pre-flight behaviour that most passengers do – but pilots hate
THERE’S a common pre-flight behaviour that a lot of passengers do before boarding – but pilots hate it.
Many pilots are said to have a number of superstitions about flying and one of them is actually popular with passengers – taking a photo outside of the plane before jetting off.
While this may seem rather odd to many, pilots are said to strongly believe that taking a photo of the plane before taking off is bad luck, reports the website The Travel.
Dave Toomey, a former World War 2 pilot, recalled a fellow pilot who took this superstition very seriously.
A day before a mission, the pilot allowed a photograph to be taken and then his plane came under attack and he barely made it back to base, Toomey told Air and Space Magazine.
Toomey said: “Barely made it back on one engine. After that, if someone ever took a picture of him, he wouldn’t fly that day.”
A more positive superstition involving photographs is keeping a photo of loved ones in their hats.
Any sort of pilot – commercial, private or military – will spend a large amount of time away from their friends and family.
Not only is it hard on them but also the people they leave behind, so many pilots bring along items that remind them of home.
A tradition that seems to have become fashionable during World War 2 is for pilots to keep photos of family and other loved ones in their hats.
It was thought that their loved ones would be watching over them from above.
Another superstition dating back to World War II is to only eat half of something and leave the rest for when you return.
Many pilots who smoked during the war would only smoke half a cigarette before a flight, saving the rest for when they got back.
It was also picked up by non-smokers as well, who would eat only half a meal and then return to the rest once they got back safely.
It gave the pilots one more ‘incentive’ to make it back alive, giving them something to “look forward to” on their return.
Another odd superstition some pilots have is never to whistle on a plane.
While there are a few whistling superstitions from around the world, many of them say that whistling will attract bad spirits.
In the UK, there is a superstitious belief in a group of mysterious spirits known as the “Seven Whistlers” that are thought to be a bad omen.
Over in Russia though, whistling is thought to bring poverty and whistling on a ship is thought to encourage storms.
It comes after a pilot revealed the sneaky way you can avoid standing in huge queues while waiting to board.
Anyone who flies regularly will know if they’re sat at the gate as people wait to get on their flight, you don’t join the long line.
It comes after frequent flyers were shocked by a secret hack that could see you avoid security queues.
According to one passenger, it cuts down the time you spend waiting to be searched to just 10 minutes.
In a 29 second clip uploaded onto TikTok, a woman reveals how she gets through airport security quicker than anyone else at Stansted Airport.
You can find nine other tips here for making your airport experience a lot smoother.