Do you believe it’s a good idea to stand up or stay seated when the plane arrives at the gate? Some stand, and others sit.
On my last flight, as we landed, I heard multiple passengers, including those in the row behind me, unbuckle their seatbelts even though we were still on the runway. Some stand, and others sit. Do you stand up or stay seated?
When the plane got to the gate, stopped, and the engines were clearly shutdown, I unbuckled and stood up in the aisle from my seat. I opened the overhead bin with our carry-ons. As I was pulling them out, the woman behind me was yelling at me for blocking the aisle. She said that she had to get to her connection and I was interfering.
The discussion about whether or not to stand up immediately when your flight reaches the gate has been going on for years, but the discussion has turned into a hot one on the Internet in the last month. I have a definite position on this issue and thought that I’d join the fray this week.
When standing up after landing is wrong:
On February 17, last year, Delta flight 4819 departed from Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport for Toronto Pearson International Airport. The 76 passengers and 4 crew members were flying in a Bombardier CRJ900 operated by Endeavor Air, a Delta Air Lines subsidiary. According to the preliminary investigation, upon a hard landing in Toronto, a landing gear component fractured, the landing gear collapsed and the plane overturned on the runway. Everyone survived, though 21 sustained injuries.
Had passengers unbuckled their seat belts upon landing immediately after the wheels touched down on the runway, like those on my flight, they might not have survived the Delta jetliner overturning on landing.
It’s rare for anything to happen during a flight while taxiing to the gate. Accidents do happen, and staying buckled in your seat will save injury. Periodically, planes face runway and taxiway incursions. Baggage cart drivers don’t pay attention. They drive too close to the jetliner. This causes the plane to slam on the brakes, throwing those unbuckled forward.
Unbuckling one’s seatbelt — or worse, standing up before the plane is fully stopped at the gate — is wrong, dangerous and should never be done by any passenger.
Reasons I’ve been told I shouldn’t stand up immediately after the plane comes to a full stop at the gate:
• I’ve been told that standing up quickly slows down deplaning.
I’ve seen some passengers who quickly stand up and actually do slow the process of exiting the plane. It’s because they’re slow to get their belongings together and aren’t ready to leave when it’s their turn.
That’s not me. During flights, I have many belongings with me at my seat. I typically have my iPad and laptop out, plus a hat, jacket, Hydroflask filled with ice tea purchased at the airport, a neck pillow and a headset. Like other frequent fliers, as I near my destination I repack my gear so that after reaching the gate I’m quickly ready to deplane. When I get up after our plane reaches the gate, I already have my jacket on. I put on my hat. I put my backpack with my camera gear and electronics in my seat and grab my roller carry-on from the overhead bin. That goes into the aisle just in front of me with the handle up. I then put on my backpack. I’m ready before the aircraft’s door is open. I don’t slow deplaning. If my wife is with me, she’s ready to go, too.
• Some say that getting up immediately is rude, annoying and a waste of time.
I don’t understand those comments. I’m not holding up anyone else from getting out quickly. I don’t charge ahead to get in front of the passengers seated in front of me. I don’t prevent anyone else from retrieving their belongings from the overhead bin so they can be ready. Therefore, I don’t see how it’s rude or annoying. It’s also not a waste of time to get up, since when it’s my turn to depart, I’m ready to go and immediately depart. I’d rather be prepared than wait until everyone in front of me has left and then hold up those behind me because I’m not ready to go. I think that it would be inconsiderate to those behind me to slow their exit by waiting to get up from my seat.
Why immediately standing once the plane comes to a full stop at the gate makes sense:
• Many of us need the physical relief of standing and stretching, particularly after a long flight and especially if the flight had lengthy periods of turbulence which didn’t permit anyone to stand for long stretches of flight time. I have a bad back. I’ve had it for decades. I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to stand after a flight, even one as short as a couple of hours. For those in the rear of the plane, where seats are generally cramped, most everyone feels relieved the moment they can stand.
• I’m almost always in an aisle seat. As a frequent flier with enough flights yearly to obtain program status, and especially because I can generally plan my flights a month or more in advance, I can generally snag my preferred aisle seat. When I get up quickly after the plane is at a full stop, my row mate(s) get a chance to have extra space to stretch a bit themselves and gather their belongings to prepare to leave the plane right after me.
• If everyone in an aisle seat gets up and gets fully prepared to depart the plane when the plane gets to the gate and comes to a complete stop, it helps everyone else in the plane to more quickly depart, including those with a connection to another flight.
What happened on my flight:
The lady behind me was obnoxious. She passed me, since she had to board her connecting flight. That silenced her, but, of course, she didn’t thank me for moving aside to let her pass. When I got to baggage claim, there she was, waiting for her bag. She lied. I wasn’t surprised. I made sure that she saw me there. She turned red again.
Conclusion:
I quickly get up from my seat once the plane gets to the gate. I do wait until the plane comes to a complete stop. In fact, I believe it’s better for passengers to get up quickly. They are then fully prepared to exit the plane. This way, they don’t hold up passengers behind them from also departing quickly. But you have a choice.
(Image: Long haul flight landing at Dulles International Airport. Copyright © 2022 NSL Photography, All Rights Reserved.)
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After many years working in corporate America as a chemical engineer, executive and eventually CFO of a multinational manufacturer, Ned founded a tech consulting company and later restarted NSL Photography, his photography business. Before entering the corporate world, Ned worked as a Public Health Engineer for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. As a well known corporate, travel and wildlife photographer, Ned travels the world writing about travel and photography, as well as running photography workshops, seminars and photowalks. Visit Ned’s Photography Blog and Galleries.
