There's more to taking a flight than grabbing a ticket and hitting the sky. See 12 surprising facts about air travel that many passengers don't know, according to Yahoo Travel.
Many flight attendants don't get paid until the doors close and the flight is underway, so hurry up and stow your carry-ons and find your seat.
Empty flights happen more often than you think. Crews are occasionally asked to "ferry" flights -- delivering a plane and its crew to destinations. Yahoo Travel reports that when that happens, adventurous flight attendants will "aisle surf," which involves riding a meal tray like a surf board down the center aisle during takeoff.
On domestic flights, layovers are only 10 hours or fewer, so flight crews don't party much between shifts -- they sleep, mostly -- and crew members are frequently given tests to make sure they're sober, reports Yahoo Travel.
In addition to training in CPR, fire safety and first aid, most flight attendants also receive self-defense training, so watch your mouth, buster.
Flight attendants can get stains out quickly, using club soda and sanitary napkins.
Flight attendants also know that air travel can be murder on your skin. They recommend baby oil for keeping your skin from drying out, according to Yahoo Travel.
Flight attendants talk about passengers. Yahoo Travel reports that some of them use code phrases such as "Hot coffee in 3B" to signal that there is an extremely attractive passenger in that seat.
If you're acting like a jerk, flight attendants may mess with your beverages, but not in a "Fight Club" way: Some may fill your cup with ice so that very little beverage will fit, so again, be polite to the flight attendants.
Flight attendants know when you're trying to enter the "Mile High Club."
Guess what? Airplane lavatories are disgusting. Flight attendant Sydney Pearl, creator of the website Diary of a P****d Off Flight Attendant and author of a book of the same name, said that airline restrooms are "glorified Port-a-Potties."
When you fly, you're breathing air from the engine.
Flight attendants sometimes have fun when bidding farewell. Yahoo Travel reports that sometimes they divide passengers by random factors -- eyeglasses, for example -- to tell "bye-bye." They say it helps make their smiles more genuine.
To read more about these surprising secrets, visit Yahoo Travel.
There's more to taking a flight than grabbing a ticket and hitting the sky. Click through to see 12 surprising facts about air travel that many passengers don't know.
