I have been flying frequently lately for work, only to destinations inside Cuba, I must say; I haven’t been outside the country in over a decade. By now, I already know by heart the safety instructions flight attendants recite before taking off.
Something that has caught my attention in these trips is the little attention most people pay to those instructions. Obviously, no one would think of bringing a machete to the plane –they wouldn’t make it past the first security control– or lighting a cigarette on board, although I’m almost sure that the latter is only thanks to the prohibition to carry matches and lighters.
Over the loudspeaker, a voice says: “The use of cell phones is not allowed during the flight, because the signal could interfere with the equipment in the plane.” The lady by my side doesn’t turn off her phone. What’s more, while the flight attendant is explaining how to use the lifejackets in case of an emergency, her phone starts ringing and she takes the call.
“I’m here, on the plane,” she shouts. “We’re about to take off. I’ll call you as soon as we land in Havana. Tell Mario not to go pick me up. We’ll get a taxi at the airport and I’ll be home by noon.”
We take off. The attendants distribute candy. The lady and her granddaughter throw the wrappers into the floor shamelessly. The kid does not want to be sitting, so she unbuckles her seat belt and kneels on the seat. It’s the attendant who has to tell her off because the grandma is too busy playing a game on her cell phone.
We land. The voice in the loudspeaker begs passengers to remain in their seats, with the belts on, until the plane stops and the doors are opened. The lady by my side doesn’t seem to have heard that. As soon as the plane starts slowing down, she gets up, and by the time the engines are finally turned off, she has been on the hall for a while already, pushing people with her bags, desperate to be the first to get out.
I have no elements to assure that this person is a bad citizen. Maybe she’s an excellent mother, neighbor, friend. But her manners on the plane were shameful. The worst is that she’s not alone. There are legions of these ill-mannered people everywhere, basically in every means of transportation.
When the plane is almost empty, I contemplate the sorrowful wake passengers have left behind: the floor is covered in wrappers, and there are newspapers, empty cans of soda and used napkins everywhere.
“This is part of an eternal vicious circle,” my friend tells me. “Who guarantees that that same lady wasn’t treated badly by someone today? How many times this same airline –its employees— have been disrespectful to customers? How can they say anything to the lady when the flight departed two hours late and no one came to offer us an apology?”
I’m out of arguments; I just shrug and go get my luggage.
