Photo of passenger’s ‘rude’ plane act divides the internet
There may be no greater source of in-flight conflict – and disgust – than people who take their shoes and socks off on an airplane.
However, in this case, while the person kept their shoes on, they stretched their feet out so far in front, they poked out under the seat of another passenger, prompting the annoyed woman to share a now viral snap of the act to Reddit.
The woman described the act as “irritating”, saying the person kept doing it repeatedly, even after she hinted that they were in her personal space.
“Mildly frustrating that this kept happening like every 15 minutes throughout the flight,” she wrote online. “I actually started very lightly knocking the person’s feet with mine.”
“Like in a very gentle ‘oops, I’m not sure what’s below my feet’ kind of way.”
“I did this a few times. Didn’t seem to work.”
The woman’s post attracted more than 2000 comments with many, particularly taller people, defending the passenger’s act.
“I’m a tall person and have most probably done this with my feet,” one person wrote.
“Remember, don’t hate the player – hate the game. I’m almost 6’ and it takes effort to not encroach into other economy passengers’ spaces, thanks to airlines’ cramped seating arrangements,” another added.
One person said planes are getting “worse and worse for me.”
“I’m not even an abnormally tall guy and the distance from my tip of my knee to my back is not short enough to fit between my seat back and the seat back in front of me,” he wrote. “There just literally is not enough space. My knees start to cramp and if feels like someone is stabbing my knees with a hunting knife. I have to stretch them out. I’m sure I’m very annoying on planes.”
The passenger’s “rude” act continued to divide opinion with others siding with the woman who took the photo.
“I’d have found an excuse to stand up and look around occasionally/repeatedly and making sure I’d stamp on their feet and make eye contact,” one annoyed Reddit user wrote.
“Kick/stomp on them until they move? Don’t be a doormat and stand up for yourself every once in a while.”
Others suggested they wouldn’t mind providing the passenger ask if they can stretch their legs out.
“Yes! that’s exactly what I’m thinking,” another agreed.
It comes after another passenger endured a similar incident, this time with the person behind stretching their bare feet underneath their seat.
The picture, taken from above, shows the stranger’s “gross” feet in between the woman’s, and back in May, a passenger filmed a fellow passengers bare feet on a person’s armrest.
A video shows a person looking at the camera in horror before zooming in on the bare feet poking through from the seat behind and on the armrest.
The traveller who shared the clip was flying from Melbourne to Adelaide when the incident occurred.
“Your worst nightmare,” one person wrote online.
Another agreed, saying: “Oh hell no.”
When the passenger appears to notice they were being filmed, they quickly whip their feet back. Little Mix star Jade Thirlwall also had a similar experience earlier this month while flying on a commercial flight.
She was so shocked by what she had witnessed she recorded a TikTok and shared it with her 1.9 million followers.
“Breathtaking views at 38,000 – feet,” the British singer captioned the video
Jade filmed herself looking stunned before flipping the phone to show a woman a few rows in front with her leg stretched so high, her foot was touching the overhead locker.
Experts have warned travelers to never be barefoot on a plane.
California-based podiatrist Ebonie Vincent, who is also behind the US TV series, My Feet Are Killing Me, said that being barefoot leaves travelers exposed to bad bacteria.