Survey Shows Airplane Travelers Hate Seat Kickers

Compiled ByJill Jusko Crying children and passengers who kick the seat in front of them during the entire flight are among the biggest pet peeves of airplane travelers, new research shows. According to a survey by fodors.com of 2,000 travelers, a full 40% of women and 34% of men cited having their seat kicked by the person behind them as their biggest pet peeve while flying. On the other hand, more men (31%) than women (23%) were distressed by a wailing baby on their flight. While just 7% of survey respondents said chatty neighbors bothered them, 27% of women and 23% of men said they get annoyed when their seatmate slowly starts to inch over into their space while getting comfortable. Asked how they handle getting to the restroom when trapped by a sleeping seatmate, some 45% of 1,900 respondents said they wake up the snoozer, while another 45% try to gingerly climb over the seatmate without bothering him. The remaining 10% were evenly split between those who try to "hold it" and those who rustle around hoping to wake up their oblivious travel companion. Men were more likely than women, 48% to 41%, to wake up the sleeper. Lowest on the list of complaints was inadequate overhead storage.