“Courteousness and Politeness” Top the List as Thais’Expectation from Fellow Passengers, Flight Attendants and Self. – Expedia.co.th Study

Monday 13 March 2017 17:21
Conducted via survey online between February 9-12, 2017 to a sample of 1,125 adult Thai residents, the survey was designed to explore Thai' attitudes toward airplane etiquette.

Expedia.co.th® today released results of the 2017 Airplane Etiquette Study, a survey conducted by GfK custom research, which finds that eight in 10 (86 percent) of Thai passengers agree that for the most part, fellow airline passengers are generally considerate, with a majority admitting to finding certain types of travelers annoying. Topping the list of etiquette violators, cited by nearly two-thirds of Thai passengers (64 percent) are Rear Seat Kickers, the passenger who constantly kicks the seat in front of them, followed closely by the Aromatic Passenger, the passenger with poor hygiene or who wears too much perfume or cologne, cited by 63 percent. Rounding out the list of etiquette violators found annoying by six in 10 are the Inattentive Parents, parents who have no control over or pay no attention to their crying, whining or misbehaved children, cited by 62 percent, and the Audio Insensitive, the passenger who talks so loudly everyone around him can hear his conversation or turns the volume on his music up so loud, cited by 61 percent.

Thai passengers extend their courteousness to the airline crew, with nine in 10 (90 percent) stating that they thoroughly clean their space before leaving the plane, and five in 10 (54 percent) will follow instructions to turn their phone on Airplane Mode when asked to do so by a flight attendant. Moreover, most passengers also respect the airline established rules with just about one in ten boarding the plane ahead of their assigned group (14 percent), or ignoring carry-on baggage rules (5 percent). Conversely, Thai passengers expect the same level of respect from Thai flight attendants. Nine in 10 (90 percent) Thai passengers have a strong expectations that Thai flight attendants must always appear polite and courteous at all times.

Roughly half of Thai passengers offered their seat to a fellow passenger in need (50 percent), or have helped someone with their luggage (49 percent). Over one third (37 percent) confess to having used social media while at the airport to communicate their travel experiences in hopes of getting a response in their favor. About one in 10 or less report inconsiderate or unscrupulous behavior like boarding the plane ahead of their assigned group (14 percent), ignoring carry-on baggage rules (5 percent) or faked a sickness or injury to get a better seat assignment (4 percent).

Thai passengers expect the same level of respect from Thai flight attendants that they give them

Thais have been widely known for their courteous and docile mannerism; whether to friends or family or strangers. Thai passengers extend their courteousness to the airline crew, with nine in 10 (90 percent) stating that they thoroughly clean their space before leaving the plane, and five in 10 (54percent) will follow instructions to turn their phone on Airplane Mode when asked to do so by a flight attendant. Moreover, most passengers also respect the airline established rules with just about one in ten boarding the plane ahead of their assigned group (14percent), or ignoring carry-on baggage rules (5percent).

Conversely, Thai passengers expect the same level of respect from Thai flight attendants. Nine in 10 (90percent) Thai passengers have a strong expectation that Thai flight attendants must always appear polite and courteous at all times.

The Rear Seat Kicker and the Aromatic Passenger, top the list as the most annoying or offensive airplane etiquette violators

While being courteous to others, Thai passengers do expect the same level of courteousness from fellow passengers when sharing a flight. Nearly two-thirds of Thai passengers (64percent) picked the Rear Seat Kicker, the passenger who constantly kicks the seat in front of them, as the airplane etiquette violator they find most annoying or offensive, followed closely by the Aromatic Passenger, the passenger with poor hygiene or who is wearing too much perfume or cologne, cited by 63percent. Rounding out the list of etiquette violators found annoying by six in 10 are the Inattentive Parents, parents who have no control over or pay no attention to their crying, whining or misbehaved children, cited by 62percent, and the Audio Insensitive, the passenger who talks so loudly everyone around him can hear his conversation or turns the volume on his music up so loud, cited by 61percent.

Most would pay to be seated in a 'quiet section'

To avoid confrontation, Thai passengers would choose to be seated in the quiet area instead. Nearly two thirds of Thai passengers feel irritated by the Rear Seat Kicker, the passenger who constantly kicks the seat in front of them (64percent), the Inattentive Parents, parents who have no control over or pay no attention to their crying, whining or misbehaved children (62percent), or the Audio Insensitive, the passenger who talks so loudly everyone around can hear the conversation or turns the music volume up so loud everyone knows what song is playing (61percent); and if airlines offered a designated 'quiet section,' nearly the same amount (62percent) would pay extra to be seated in such an area.

Some casual conversation is appropriate, but most dread sitting next to someone who talks too much

Though friendliness is among one of Thais' charms knows to foreigners, Thais feel that small talks or friendly famous "Thai Smiles" suffice and do prefer those over having long conversation with fellow passengers. Nearly two thirds of Thai passengers use the flight as an opportunity to talk and meet new people (65percent), and when sitting next to someone they do not know, they will often engage them in conversation and talk to them during the flight (63percent). However, seven in 10 (72percent) dread sitting next to someone who talks too much, and about half (55percent) feel annoyed by the Chatty Cathy, the neighbor who strikes up a conversation and won't stop.

A majority want reclining seats banned or restricted to set times on short-haul flights

Despite the fact that most Thai passengers do recline their seats during flight, majority of them would still like to see reclining seats banned or restricted. Seven in 10 (71percent) of Thai passengers say they would like reclining seats banned or at least restricted to set times on short-haul flights. Six in 10 (60percent) recline their seat while sleeping, 28percent recline during longer flights of three or more hours, 18percentrecline if the person in front of them does, 14% recline after meal service, 8percent recline immediately after take-off. Moreover, 10percent do not recline their seat because it seems to be improper etiquette, and 8percent do not recline their seat because it doesn't feel comfortable.

Among those who recline their seats, most would recline their seat regardless of who is seated behind them. Half would still recline their seat if the person seated behind them was noticeably pregnant (50percent), elderly or frail (36percent), showed aggressive or rude behavior (34percent), had their laptop out (29percent), or was particularly tall (28percent).

Many show consideration in helping others passenger in need, while few demonstrate inconsiderate or unscrupulous behaviors

Lending hands to those in need is part of Thai culture and is commonly practiced in safe environment. Roughly half of Thai passengers offered their seat to a fellow passenger in need (50percent), or have helped someone with their luggage (49percent). Over one third (37percent) confess to having used social media while at the airport to communicate their travel experiences in hopes of getting a response in their favor. About one in 10 or less report inconsiderate or unscrupulous behavior like boarding the plane ahead of their assigned group (14percent), ignoring carry-on baggage rules (5percent) or faked a sickness or injury to get a better seat assignment (4percent).

Most would alert the flight attendant of issues with a misbehaving passenger rather than remaining quiet

Confrontation is not commonly practiced within Thai culture; however, Thai passengers believe in authoritative figures to exercise their powers accordingly. Eight in 10 (80percent) would alert the flight attendant and ask them to handle a situation with "misbehaving passengers." While less than one in 10 (6percent) would confront the passenger directly, others would take a non-confrontational route. About one fifth say they would rather remain quiet or ignore it than take some sort of action (24percent), or would record the incident (19percent); while less than one in 10 would take the issue to social media.

For more news on Expedia.co.th, please visit https://travelblog.expedia.co.th/