The Theme “Airport Rules:”

If you haven’t been to an airport before, don’t worry. Some of your friends or your siblings have not been to an airport before. Here are the rules and etiquette behavior you should expect when you are at an airport, ready for take-off.

My co-worker at Temple, named Luke, told me he had never been on a plane since his entire life, ready to share this blog with him about the airport experience. I explained about my airport experiences back when I was in school/work, fly-in and fly-out of Philadelphia/NYC for school breaks.

Remember when I was studying at the University of Arizona, working on a travel blogger at the beginning of my college semester? Some of the friends I met had not experienced rules and expectations when going out in a community, such an airport, so I came up with innovative ways to learn the hidden curriculum in and out in public. Some of my friends from Tucson and Phoenix have not been on a plane nor an airport before. I am going to teach them lessons about the expected behavior at an airport. 

I started with a piece of paper on Airport Rules when I began to fly the beginning of 2010 onward: From and To Tucson – Philadelphia for school/work. (Updated: Now, I fly the planes every year).

Here I remembered what I wrote when lecturing University of Arizona Friends:

• You cannot bring over 3 ounces containers for carry-ons.
• No running. That is a childish.
• Keep your thoughts inside your head if you are alone.
• Alcohol & Drugs should not be carried through the security.
• No sport equipment for carry-ons.
• Listen to the flight number.
• No crawling around.
• No joking around airport security or anyone else.
• Never talk about weapons, bombs, 9/11, or other terrorist things.
• Please keep your voices down.
• Have your boarding ticket ready for boarding.
• Please have your personal space – never talk to strangers.
• Never destroy the public property.
• Cellphones must be off at the place before the take-off. 

I teach the whole class about behavioral expectations at an airport and lots of traveling friends from the University of Arizona did not know the behaviors were wrong or unacceptable, so they clench the mistakes they admire. It is essential to learn the mistakes, so you don’t end up in the same mistake again.

Here I remembered what it means.

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You cannot bring over 3 ounces containers for carry-ons.

• Remembered the 3-1-1 rule? You cannot bring over 3 ounces of liquids or gels each, and they must be inside a small plastic zip-up bag. The rule applies to a plastic, zip-up bag per passenger. There is an exception for checked bags stored liquid or gels.

No running. That is a childish.

• Remember to behave with age-appropriate? No running around in an airport, especially if you are traveling alone. People will watch you and have weird thoughts about you. You are a grown-up, and nobody’s watching you or control how you should act.

Keep your thoughts inside your head if you are alone.

• I wondered if you are talking to whom? Who are you talking to? It is peculiar to talk to yourself in public, such as an airport. If there is nothing to say, don’t say anything.

Alcohol & Drugs should not be carried through the security.

• Alcohol before the flight to Philadelphia? I know alcohol can make you high, but unfortunately, alcohol can make you sick and dehydration relating to interference with the flights. Be aware of the drinks you are taking in and know your limit.

No sport equipment for carry-ons.

• Are you traveling with sports equipment? Same as more substantial than 3-ounce containers, all sports equipment should be in the checked luggage to prevent a real hazard or settled during the flight.

Listen to the flight number.

• Plan for taking a nap? In my knowledge, I had experienced my domestic flights from Phoenix to Philadelphia on the morning of December 20th, 2009, when I took a short nap. I believe 30 minutes should be ideal time before scheduled to board and 45 minutes for internationally. You don’t want to miss your flights or end up in a wrong flight number.

No crawling around.

• Crawling around would be fun exercising, but what if you are out in the open? How many of you like to crawl when you were a little kid? I know it sounds odd to crawl, but crawling in public can be strange. It is okay to have fun at an airport but remember the rule: don’t take it extremely. I am telling you. 
• Keep in mind. This is not a fire evaluation. 

No joking around airport security or anyone else.

• This concept is crucial if you plan to head to the airport to catch your flights in the future. Even though it is a joke, do not take it through TSA personnel. They can be extremely offensive and can eject you from your airport to the custody. You don’t want this to happen, aren’t you?

Never talk about weapons, bombs, 9/11, or other terrorist things.

• I know there is freedom of speech, but what if you are on a different secured setting with TSA lingering around? Don’t talk about 9/11, terrorists, weapons, or explosives of any kind. We don’t want to have another 9/11 tragic event or worse.
• Even through disabled, female passengers in Phoenix Sky Harbor knew the expectations very well, she refused to talk about Al Qaeda by saying, “Sorry, can you change your topic?”

Please keep your voices down.

• This airport is not a party nor a place to have fun. Airpot is a quiet place, and every passenger should keep voices to a minimum. 

Have your boarding ticket ready for boarding.

• In my experience, for domestic flights, you should have your boarding pass 15 minutes before you line up to board the plane. In contrast to international flights, you should take out your boarding pass 30 minutes before you line up to board the flight. 
• On my airline’s app, I used my phone to scan my boarding pass to board the flight (since 2013). My idea is the recommended method, so you don’t have to stress over to search for your boarding pass. Boarding pass comes in handy.
• You don’t want to stress yourself by digging your bag to search your boarding pass just because you don’t know when was the last time you stored in your bag. 

Please have your personal space – never talk to strangers.

• I know that economy class usually has cramped space, but if a person is bigger than the seat, it makes them very difficult to stretch your arms, legs, and to move around. 
• I know that talking to strangers can be both advantages and disadvantages because it depends on which topics they are discussing. For example, if a person starts a conversation about Philadelphia, you can talk about it. Do not discuss any personal information, such as marital status, family life, own problems. Etc. Also, do not talk about the latest political and prejustice topics. 

Never destroy the public property.

• Like Airports, Public Transportation is also the public property where everyone has access to the site without restrictions. When they are destroying, for example, graffiti, defacing, or creating unsanitary conditions, they are destroying or tampering their public property.
• Yep, this includes political topics at an airport.

Cellphones must be off at the place before the take-off. 

• Previously, my phone doesn’t have a plane mode, so I turned off the phone entirely because of the risk of the potential contamination of the other communication devices between a plane and an air traffic controller.
• In 2010s models, such as Samsung S models, they started to have a modern plane mode where it suspends all communication and transmitting devices without having to turn off the phone.
• Before your phone was to set your plane mode, make sure your phone complies with airline regulations. If it doesn’t, turn off the phone.

You see? For those who had never been on a plane, you should read this simple rule and immerse them before you step on the plane. This article will guide you through the hidden curriculum above and hope you will understand, especially when you plan to fly (solo) in the future.