'Wildly Rude' and 'Unhygienic' Hack for Watching Phone Videos on Plane Sparks Debate: Would You Use It?
A TikTok user flipped the headrest cover from the seat in front of hers to secure her smartphone for hands-free viewing
Getty; Manuel Romano/NurPhoto via Getty
A plane passenger’s hack for holding up her smartphone to watch videos didn’t land smoothly on TikTok.
Ida Augusta shared footage of herself and a fellow traveler using the headrest covers from the seats in front of theirs to suspend their phones at eye level for a hands-free viewing experience on a recent flight.
In the clip, the women quickly flip the covers to the back before the passengers occupying those seats have boarded their Norwegian Air flight. They then remove their phone cases to secure the fabric between their phones and cases, before snapping them back on.
The text on the video simply reads “Airplane hack,” while the post is captioned, “Did you know?”
Getty
Commenters were quick to call out the boldness of using an item intended for a neighboring seat without asking for permission.
“Maybe ask someone before touching their designated things,” one person wrote.
Some also noted that the headrest covers are there for hygienic purposes and shouldn’t be moved.
Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty
“This is wildly rude- those sheets are for hygiene reasons and you’re taking those away from the people in front of you,” read another comment.
Other commenters suggested that the people in front of them should respond by pushing their seats back, with one writing, “Hard recline if you did this.”
Whether reclining one’s seat on a plane is rude to the passenger sitting behind has been a longstanding etiquette debate itself.
When PEOPLE spoke with travel expert, writer and advisor Nicole Campoy Jackson of Fora Travel in September, Jackson weighed in on the divisive topic.
Related: Is It Rude to Recline Your Seat on a Plane? A Travel Expert Answers
"I'm not in the no-reclining school of thought, but I think we can recline with courtesy and understanding that we're all in tight quarters," she said.
Jackson suggested taking a glance at the person behind you before making any moves after takeoff.
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"If their laptop is out or they have a drink on the table, now is not a great time to recline and it certainly wouldn't be okay to do so without giving them a head's up,” she said.
And there is one time you should never recline, she says.
Jackson noted, “During mealtimes, definitely bring your seat back up if you have reclined it."
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