- Planes are uncomfortable and simply not as glamorous as they used to be.
- Even so, about one in 50 passengers apparently meet the love of their lives on a flight.
- That's according to a new survey from HSBC that asked thousands of passengers about their flight habits.
- Looking at the US statistics specifically, two couples met on the average flight.
If the whole #PlaneBae saga didn't put you off, love could be on the cards during your next plane journey. According to a new survey by HSBC, four American passengers on the typical flight have met the love of their lives on a plane.
About 11.9 million people fly on the average day — the size of a small country. With over a third of these passengers flying alone, the potential for meeting someone in the air could be pretty high.
In fact, more than half of people on flights have started a conversation with a stranger next to them, 14% have made a lasting friendship, and 16% have made a business connection.
The HSBC survey included 2,150 interviews from recent flight bookers from 141 countries, as well as 2,000 residents of the UK, 1,000 from the US, 1,000 from Hong Kong, and 1,000 from United Arab Emirates who flew internationally in the past year.
According to their answers about their flight experiences and onboard connections, one in every 50 passengers said they met the love of their life on a plane.
Looking at the US statistics specifically, two couples met on the average flight.
From the passengers' answers, a typical in-the-air date would see couples sharing a sandwich, a gin and tonic, and watching an action film — the most popular meal choice, drink, and movie genre of travellers.
However, flying isn't fun and games for everyone. After all, if one in 50 passengers meets the love of their life, that means 49 out of 50 don't.
There are several things about flying that annoy people too much to worry about dating. For instance, being rude to flight attendants was a taboo for 65% of passengers, followed by allowing children to kick someone's seat, which annoyed 57%. Coming in close behind were taking shoes off (48%), letting children run riot (47%), and drinking too much (46%).
Other grievances were a passenger in front pushing back their chair, which upset 44% of people, and taking up too much space in the lockers, which annoyed 37%. Hogging the arm rest bugged 32% of people, and falling asleep on someone's shoulder was annoying for 30%. Even the habit of clapping when the plane lands was irritating for 18% of passengers.
Air travel is uncomfortable and not a great experience for a lot of people. Your feet can swell up, your skin dries out, and it's nearly impossible to get adequate sleep. So people may be more irritable than usual.
But if the survey results are correct, if you're a little more patient, you could meet someone special. You never know who could be sat next to you.
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