Baggage Handler Reveals Dark Secrets Of The Airline Industry

1. Pilots have fallen asleep whilst flying the plane

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Pilots work crazy hours, there's no 9-5 because it all depends on the flight times. And a pilot may have to fly multiple planes in a day. They may be flying for all kinds of hours so of course, they are often severely fatigued. When a pilot is flying the plane, according to a baggage handler who heard that pilots often go on their phones or read books and even sometimes fall asleep! Apparently, this is fairly common...

2. Security breaches do happen

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When you think of an airport you think of the tight-knit security. And it's true, most of the time. According to a baggage handler who worked in the airline industry he said that when there were staff shortages or when they were pushed for time, sometimes security breaches did happen that should not have done. These were sometimes the result of rushing the process!

3. In some cases, there have been instances of inside trading

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So this isn't something that may happen a lot. But as a baggage handlers for the airline industry, they were aware of what went on inside the industry and claimed that insider trading sometimes happened. This means that information is used for this gain before it goes public, for example, it could be to do with trading stocks before the public knows about it.

4. Data breaches happen with passenger's information

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Airlines have access to a lot of our personal data and information, so the last thing you expect or want to hear is that data breaches happen with our information! You expect an airline to have more data safety than most industries do, however this baggage handler revealed multiple occasions when the customer's data was breached without them even knowing about it!

5. Some staff have been caught in drug trafficking

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One of the most shocking things that a baggage handler revealed about the airline industry was that drug trafficking by STAFF had really occurred. In these cases, they used their status within the airline and their knowledge of the industry to plan and organize drug trafficking amongst a few corrupt members of the airline staff. Of course, they did end up getting caught thankfully!

6. Corruption is rife within aviation authorities

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Another thing you never even think about within the airline industry is the politics of it. According to certain sources, corruption is rampant within the aviation authorities and the regulatory bodies of the airline industry. This doesn't happen regularly, or within every airline, however, apparently there are a number of instances where it does or has occurred.

7. Sometimes safety checks are rushed

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The one thing you absolutely don't want to hear is that safety checks are ever rushed. Yes, nobody wants to wait around longer than anticipated, but sometimes this is necessary because some safety checks take longer than others and it can mean a small delay. But, airlines want to avoid delays as much as possible and sometimes the safety checks end up being rushed!

8. Things happen all the time that customers are kept in the dark about

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When you're in an airport or on a plane, so many things are happening and you as the customer will be blissfully unaware. For example, if there are small problems on a flight, you will not be informed unless it becomes apparent. Only when an action has to be taken will you be informed? For example, if one of the engines fails, you'll only be told so that the plane can perform an emergency landing.

9. There have been many cases of sexual assault in the industry

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Sexual assault and harassment are shockingly very frequent within the airline industry. In fact, surveys conducted of flight attendants found that two-thirds had faced sexual harassment at some point in their careers. And it wasn't limited to flight attendants, employees from all over the sector have reported cases of assault or harassment and the industry in the US became a big participant in the Me Too movement.

10. Price fixing happens all the time

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Price fixing is where competing companies conspire illegally to set prices at a higher rate so that customers pay more and they gain more profit. According to a baggage handler from the industry, they revealed that this has been a practice that does sometimes occur within the airline industry. Meaning, the holiday goers pay way more than they should have.

11. Human remains are sometimes lost by the airline industry!

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This one truly is a dark and disturbing secret. But sometimes human remains have to be carried by aircraft when somebody dies whilst on vacation or abroad and their body needs to be shipped back. And the greatest care is usually taken. However, there have been instances where the airline has misplaced the human remains and they could no longer be found.

12. Some airline execs have been involved in embezzlement

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Some airline executives have been caught up in embezzlement, which is a kind of fraud where they steal funds in their power for their own gain. This has happened within the airline on multiple occasions where the big bosses were misappropriating the funds. According to a baggage handler who revealed the secrets of the airline, this has happened multiple times!

13. Sometimes avoidable accidents happen due to aircraft safety negligence

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As we said before, sometimes security breaches happen when the safety checks have been rushed or not properly done. And this has before led to accidents or mishaps happening which could've been avoided if the safety checks had been done as thoroughly and properly as they were meant to be done. This is pretty scary stuff, so think again next time you get annoyed at the slow pace of check in!

14. Some airlines have been found to engage in human trafficking

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One of the most shocking things of all that was revealed to have happened within the airline was human trafficking. This is not something that happens as a common occurrence by any means. In certain airports and certain airlines, it is known to have happened once before, however. These people were caught creating a system from the airline industry which they knew from the inside.

15. Discrimination in the airline industry is a problem

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Discrimination doesn't only happen with passengers - although it does happen with passengers too. But it also happens amongst staff. In fact, a baggage holder has revealed that many staff in the airline industry have found themselves discriminated against for different reasons. In some circumstances, they have found job opportunities hard to come by because they have been discriminated against!

16. Sometimes safety breaches have led to the system being hijacked

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Safety breaches are something that is always being deterred and the airline industry has to be constantly aware of the threats and the system always has to be updated and protected to save it from being hijacked. But there have been instances where the system has actually been overtaken which leads to an extremely dangerous situation where the airline is no longer in control of what is happening.

17. There have been instances of stolen luggage by workers

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A baggage handler revealed that whilst they were working within the airline industry they saw all kinds of things happen. And one of these was staff actually stealing passengers' luggage. When the bags came through sometimes workers will scope out bags that look expensive or like they may hold expensive goods. This has been something that has happened on numerous occasions.

18. Racial profiling happens during security checks!

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Another secret revealed by a baggage handler from within the airline industry is that racial profiling happens all of the time at security checks. People are discriminated against due to their race, or discriminated against due to their race or certain physical attributes. They are then given extra checks or more throughout checked and questioned than people of other races may be.

19. Sometimes the security machines are not reliable

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The security machines are in place to keep everybody in the airport and on the flight safe. So they have to be ultra-sensitive to pick up different kinds of things which could be perceived as hazards or threats. So it's shocking to find out that sometimes these machines are not as accurate as we may think. And sometimes they do not manage to pick up on things that they should have.

20. In-flight medical emergencies happen a lot

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So you may be familiar with the fact that there has to be somebody trained in first aid or medical emergencies on board every flight to ensure that if something does happen when the airplane is in the air, somebody will know what to do and can help the situation. And these medical emergencies happen way more often than we may have thought. They are actually frequent occurrences onboard.

21. Some crew members have been found to be under the influence whilst on duty

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Studies which were conducted sporadically found that some members of the crew were actually under the influence whilst on duty in the airline industry. Each and every role within the industry is very important to ensure the safety of passengers and crew, and so the results of the study were extremely shocking and worrying to hear. Although most staff of course were not, these anomalies showed an issue!

22. Mechanical issues happen all the time

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Mechanical issues are frequent in airplanes due to the size and complexities of the structures. There are so many different components working together at any one given time that there is a lot of room for things to go wrong. More often than not, these mechanical issues are small things that can be overcome. Most planes have backups in the event of something going wrong.

23. Airlines have to be constantly aware of external threats

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There are always external things that are happening that are perceived as threats. Airports are always seen as a place where maximum security is needed against these threats as they are huge, important places. So the safety and the surveillance teams within airports that we cannot see and are totally unaware of are huge. They operate 24 hours a day and look for any minor to major situation.

24. Air traffic mishaps can end up in fatalities

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The number one rated most stressful job in the world according to some research papers is air traffic control. This is because the job requires constant and extreme vigilance. They have to pay attention to absolutely everything going on to ensure that the plane in flight will not hit any problems or obstacles. A mishap within this job can cause massive tragedy.

25. Germs spread like wildfire on airplanes

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I'm sure we've all been on a plane where we can hear someone profusely coughing and 3 days later we start getting that scratchy feeling in our throat and we know exactly where it's come from. The re-circulated air conditioning goes around the plane from the beginning of the journey until the end. Therefore all of the germs are carried within that air which can mean everybody on board is affected.

26. Discrimination against disabled passengers happens frequently

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The infrastructure for disabled passengers should now be just as good as any other passenger. But it's just not the case with many airlines and airports. For example, disabled people have found themselves in all kinds of circumstances where they have been discriminated against and been humiliated. Sometimes passengers with mobility issues have had to wait hours before the correct equipment arrived and they could finally disembark the aircraft.

27. Cyber attacks are a constant threat

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Cyber attacks are a constant threat to airports. So it's something that they have to be constantly aware of and they have to very vigilant and secure to stop the threats from coming to fruition. Cyber attacks could lead to all kinds of things happening, and they could lead to potentially extremely dangerous situations, for example, if the attack took over the software and the computers.

28. There are often not enough provisions for passengers on board

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I'll have the barbecue pringles...' they're all gone'.  Okay, I'll have the cheese and ham panini...' no that's gone too'. It's always the case that the first couple of things you ask to buy have run out. This is because most of the time, there aren't actually sufficient provisions onboard. Especially for different diet requirements! So you may end up with the plain cheese sandwich which clearly wasn't so popular.

29. Baggage handlers often throw the suitcases

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You get a nice suitcase and you just know that after your first holiday, it's not going to look anything as it did in its neatest state. It may come back without a wheel, or with a handle hanging off. This is because the baggage handles often throw the suitcases. Especially when they are in a rush and have time pressures. Instead of placing the baggage, it can be thrown.

30. Delays are often avoidable

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How many times do you catch a flight and see the dreaded word in red next to it on the flight board....delay. It happens every single day within the airline industry. And a lot of these are unavoidable for example, because of the weather. But a lot of them aren't. And apparently, delays happen constantly which could've been totally avoided with some better planning!