Flights From Hell flies you into the crazy skies with stories about the adventures and anxieties of airplane travel.

Commercial airline travel takes us far, far out of our comfort zone. We're herded into cylinders that zip hundreds of miles per hour at 30,000 feet, subjected to security screenings, confronted with delays and lost luggage, rushed to catch connecting flights, constrained to small seats, scrunched up with strangers, and surrounded by pathogens. Is it any wonder we end up becoming a bundle of raw nerves by journey's end?

Food Cart Raided After Passengers are Stranded

July 2, 2011 Delay Stories

While not as hellish as some of the other stories here, I did have a miserable flight. Flew from Dulles to Logan one weekend a few years ago for the high school reunion. Normally, the flight is a tad bit over an hour, so I foolishly assumed that a 2:30pm flight with no checked in [...]

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Kindness to Ticket Agent Benefits Travelers

July 1, 2011 Airport Stories

It was February of 2010 when a friend and I decided to go and visit a close friend in Philadelphia. The two of us go to college in Texas about 100 miles outside of Houston. We booked our trip a few weeks in advance and planned on leaving Friday afternoon and returning Sunday evening to [...]

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“Sleeping” Passenger Snatches Window Seat

June 26, 2011 Seat Stories

Travelling alone most of the time, I make sure to always get a window seat even for long haul flights. I do not need to go the bathroom often and I always make sure to go whenever the people next to me go. Also, I find the window a good place to lean on when [...]

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Winter Weather Thwarts Traveler’s Plans

June 23, 2011 Delay Stories

My second flight from hell happened Christmas 2007. I booked a flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Portland, Oregon months in advance and I was really looking forward to seeing good friends again after quite a while. I was booked on United from Frankfurt to Chicago O’Hare and later to Portland. It was December 23rd and [...]

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Tired Passengers Confronted with Tyre Change

May 27, 2011 Airplane Stories

This occurrence happened in 2005 when I was 15 and going on a round-the-world trip with my dad. We had landed at Heathrow after a 14 hour flight from Tokyo and had to change planes to fly to Paris. So we get onto a small BA Airbus without much trouble. Then as we are about [...]

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Miss Psychotic

May 3, 2011 Passenger Stories

Well I could have guessed people of a less stable mind would have to travel too. Last September I finally witnessed this. It all happened on a nice late September day flying on an Emirates flight from Dubai to Düsseldorf, a 6 or 7 hour flight. Thank God it was on a day time flight. [...]

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Suggestions for Improving Air Travel

April 29, 2011 Flying Hell Commentary

Dear Flyers: As known today, the flying public’s decency and manners has plummeted. This is this case for nearly all ages and genders. Babies who cry and scream, seniors who think they own the place by bossing younger generations around such as having them lift their suitcases and ignoring others or causing discomfort, to kids [...]

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Nervous About Nosedives

April 22, 2011 Weather Stories

I always knew that international flights, especially ones going across the Pacific ocean, were a little bumpy. I was never afraid of flying when I was a kid, I loved every aspect of it. And I don’t remember ever being afraid or even noticing turbulence. A few years ago, I suddenly became TERRIFIED of flying. [...]

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Upset About USA Security

April 3, 2011 Airport Stories

I fly from Norway to USA once or twice a year. Usually I use SAS, from Bergen to Kastrup, Copenhagen, then from Kastrup, Copenhagen to Dulles Washington. This usually goes smoothly; check in Bergen and going all the way through to Dulles Washington, just interrupted by showing my passport at Kastrup. Then just go straight [...]

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Harried Traveler Stressed about Lost Luggage

March 31, 2011 Luggage Stories

Not quite a full-on “from hell” story, but almost: I was flying from Syracuse, NY to St. Louis this past Christmas on United, with a connection in O’Hare. As you may be aware, Syracuse has snowy winters, but things weren’t too terribly bad on Dec. 23rd when I flew. I got to the airport on [...]

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