A flight attendant and a travel etiquette expert share what you need to know about this annoying trend
Airline Passengers Are Reportedly Doing This 40% More Frequently—And Flight Attendants Aren’t Having It
Published on Apr. 24, 2025
I’ve flown more times than I can count, but there’s one super common passenger habit I’ve never done. Chalk it up to a mix of people-pleasing and a deep fear of confrontation, but I’m the kind of traveler who’d rather hold it for three hours than wake the person next to me to use the bathroom. I’ll contort myself like a yoga pretzel so the person in front of me can fully recline. And above all, I never, ever want to inconvenience the flight attendants. They work so hard and have so many passengers to care for!
Honestly, I probably take this too far. But lately, it seems like a lot of travelers are headed in the opposite direction. In fact, flight attendants say that one behavior, in particular, has skyrocketed in the friendly skies lately.
So what’s behind the sudden spike in this all-too-frequent behavior? And is it a polite habit, a breach of airplane etiquette or just part of the modern flying experience? To find out, I talked to Cecily Anderson, a flight attendant with a major U.S. airline, and Jamila Musayeva, a certified etiquette coach and the author of three books on modern manners. Here’s what you need to know before your next flight.
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What are airline passengers doing more frequently?
People are pressing the flight attendant call button way more than they used to—one flight attendant told USA Today it’s up to 40% more often. And to think I’ve never even pressed it once! I grew up thinking that the tiny button above your airplane seat was to be treated with the reverence of an emergency fire alarm. But somewhere between the rise of in-flight Wi-Fi and the emotional-support-peacock saga, passengers have started hitting that call button like it’s a game-show buzzer.
Anderson confirms the trend: “I do hear from other flight attendants at other airlines that they are hearing the call button a lot more often these days.”
But why? “I think the rise in demanding behavior comes from a combination of expectations and emotional fatigue,” Musayeva says. “We are used to immediacy: instant responses from our phones, fast delivery, quick fixes. But an airplane isn’t built for that rhythm. It runs on safety, structure and shared space. And when passengers forget they’re in a shared environment, it can create unnecessary tension.”
It’s not just passengers, however. Anderson says it often depends on the airline. On higher-end carriers like JetBlue, she sees call buttons lighting up constantly. But on budget airlines, like Southwest, it happens far less. “Some of it has to do with the culture of the airline,” she explains. “At Southwest, we are trained to basically always be in the aisles, which means people don’t have to use it that much because we are right there.”
Why does using the call button really annoy flight attendants?
Short answer: because they are not personal butlers trapped in the sky with you. Flight attendants are safety professionals first. Their job also sometimes requires them to be food-service workers, therapists, referees, EMTs and the only thing standing between you and the guy behind you who keeps coughing like he’s a character in a Dickens novel. And yet, according to Reddit threads on call-button etiquette, they’re increasingly asked to fulfill extra roles like the ones in the real-life comments below (which have been edited for length and clarity):
- Custom barista: “Can I get a half Diet Coke, half regular Coke with lemon and ice—but not too much ice—and can you peel the lemon?”
- Personal shopper: “Do you have any more pretzels? No? What about cookies? Can I exchange them for a candy bar?”
- Tech support: “My Bluetooth won’t connect to my AirPods. Can you fix it?”
- Judge and jury: “Can you settle an argument between me and my wife about how soap works?”
- Bouncer: “The guy in front of me keeps reclining his seat into my knees. Can you make him move?”
- Babysitter: “Can you watch my toddler so I can go to the bathroom or grab a quick nap?”
- Navigator: “Once we land, how do I get to the passenger-pickup station?”
- Enforcer: “Will you ask the person behind me to use headphones? The whole plane shouldn’t be forced to watch Shawshank Redemption with them.”
The issue with these requests, Anderson says, isn’t just that it’s not the flight attendant’s job—it’s that they’re very often things the traveler can and should figure out themselves.
When should passengers push the flight attendant call button?
This largely depends on the airline (and none of them have an official call-button policy) and the individual flight attendant, Anderson says.
“Some flight attendants treat it like it should only be used for emergencies and get really irritated when people push it for non-emergencies,” she says. “I personally don’t mind when it goes off. If people need something, they need something, and my job is to ensure that they are taken care of.”
That said, Musayeva offers some good-etiquette guidelines for when to use the call button. It is there for a reason, after all.
Medical issues
It doesn’t have to be an actual emergency. But if you (or someone near you) feels faint, is having trouble breathing or is having another type of urgent medical issue, definitely press that button. This is exactly what it’s for.
Wet spills and messes
Spilled coffee all over your tray and now your personal items are floating? Fair game. Flight attendants need to know to help prevent someone slipping or a larger mess spreading. Cookie crumbs and dropped Goldfish can wait until you land.
Missed service due to being asleep or in the bathroom
If you snoozed through drink service or were in the bathroom when the snacks came by, pressing the button is OK. Just be polite about it—and maybe don’t act shocked that they didn’t wait for you.
Seat malfunctions
If your seat belt won’t click, the armrest is stuck or something’s genuinely wrong with your seat setup, it’s better to flag it than suffer in silence.
Escalating issues with another passenger
This one is tricky because conflicts with other people are one of the toughest things to deal with in an enclosed metal tube in the air. You should try to work it out yourself first by calmly communicating what you need—”Would you mind using headphones?” “Could you please recline your seat a little less?”—but if things get aggressive, it’s fair game to call over a flight attendant. “We are trained to de-escalate issues,” Anderson says.
Extra items
Need an extra blanket or a drink refill? Don’t go hunting through cabinets yourself. It’s fine to stand up and find the flight attendant to help you, but it’s also cool to ring the call button—as long as it’s not in the middle of a busy moment or during extreme turbulence.
A lot of it comes down to awareness. “Pay attention to the rhythm of the flight. During boarding, takeoff and landing, the flight attendants are often restricted by safety protocols and cannot assist with non-urgent requests,” Musayeva says. “The best approach is to be observant and respectful. If they’re serving meals, in the middle of turbulence or visibly attending to another passenger, consider waiting a few minutes. In tight spaces like airplanes, that awareness makes the difference between a stressful flight and a pleasant one.”
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Sources:
- Cecily Anderson, flight attendant with a major U.S. airline; in-person interview, April 20, 2025
- Jamila Musayeva, certified etiquette coach and author of three etiquette books; email interview, April 15, 2025
- USA Today: “Headphones, tantrums and call buttons: Why travelers are losing it in the air”
- Reddit: “Call button flight etiquette”
- Reddit: “Attendant call button etiquette”
- Reddit: “When to use the call button?”
- YouGov: “In-flight drama: Where Americans sit on airline etiquette”
