Ever wondered why cabin crew insist on certain instructions during flights?
"Open your window blind. Put your seat upright. Remove your headphones. Make sure your bag is under the seat in front of you."
For many travellers, these requests during flights can feel repetitive, unnecessary or even frustrating.
Yet every instruction given by the cabin crew on airlines has a single purpose: keeping passengers safe.
"Every safety instruction onboard an aircraft exists for a reason," says Theuns Dreyer, head of airports and ground operations at LIFT.
"Most travellers only experience the instruction, not the thinking behind it. Understanding why these procedures exist helps explain why cabin crew take them so seriously."
In fact, these procedures are based on decades of international research, operational experience and continuous improvements in aviation safety.
The 90-second rule
The most crucial phases of any flight are take-off and landing.
In fact, aviation regulators require that every commercial aircraft can be completely evacuated within 90 seconds, even if half the emergency exits are unusable or blocked.
During these tight windows, every fraction of a second counts.
“Opening window blinds during take-off and landing allows crew and passengers to quickly assess conditions outside the aircraft should an evacuation become necessary,” explains Dreyer.
It lets the crew check for external hazards like fire or debris before opening a door.
Meanwhile, removing headphones ensures passengers hear critical announcements immediately. And dimming the cabin lights allows human eyes, which can take several minutes to adapt to darkness, to pre-adjust.
If power fails or smoke fills the cabin, pre-conditioned eyes can instantly spot illuminated exit signs and floor-path escape lighting.
Returning seats to an upright position keeps the path to the aisle wide and unblocked, allowing the passenger behind enough room to adopt the brace position or escape quickly.
Stowing tray tables prevents them from becoming abdominal impact hazards or physical barriers during a sudden stop.
Even during smooth cruising, cabin safety protocols remain active to mitigate hidden risks.
"We also advise keeping a seatbelt fastened whenever seated offers protection against unexpected clear-air turbulence, even after the seatbelt sign has been switched off."
Clear-air turbulence happens without visual warnings on radar and can violently throw unbuckled passengers into overhead bins.
During an emergency evacuation, leaving carry-on baggage behind is essential.
“Bags can delay passengers, block narrow aisles, tear open inflatable evacuation slides, and drastically slow down an exit when every second counts,” he shares.
Even aircraft ashtrays continue to serve a purpose despite smoking being strictly prohibited worldwide.
"They provide the safest place to extinguish a cigarette should someone ignore the no-smoking rules, reducing the risk of fire in the aircraft."
The battery threat
Another area that continues to confuse is travelling with personal electronics.
Power banks, smartphones, laptops, tablets, cameras, smartwatches, drones and drone batteries, electric toothbrushes, vape devices and wireless earbuds, among others, are all powered by lithium-ion batteries.
While generally safe, damaged, crushed or faulty batteries can enter a state known as thermal runaway, a rapid, self-heating chain reaction that can reach temperatures exceeding 600°C and produce dense smoke, fire or explosions.
"Lithium batteries are one of the few items passengers travel with that have very specific international safety requirements, which have received multiple regulatory updates recently," says Dreyer.
"If a battery overheats in the cabin, crew can respond immediately. If it's packed in checked baggage, it becomes far more difficult to detect and manage."
A shared responsibility in the sky
"Air travel is one of the safest forms of transport in the world because the industry never stops learning and improving," concludes Dreyer.
"We want passengers to arrive at the airport confident they know what they can and can't pack. These aren't simply airline preferences; they're internationally recognised aviation safety requirements designed to protect passengers, crew and aircraft."
A quick check before leaving home can help avoid delays and contribute to a safer journey for everyone. Following these procedures may only take a few seconds, but they can make a significant difference if they're ever needed.
alyssia.birjalal@nationalmg.co.za