One little thing that can scare even the most seasoned travelers is bed bugs. Earlier this year, Paris experienced an infestation; the city was crawling with them in hotels and on trains. It was worldwide news but fortunately, the hysteria died down before the 2024 Olympic Games.
A Reddit user who goes by @HaddawayThrowaway978 just posted a photo (see embedded photo below) of a bed bug on his napkin on American Airlines flight 4412. The caption reads: “Found this bed bug crawling on my leg mid flight (LGA to DTW). I was seated in First Class. I put it on the cocktail napkin to show the FA who promptly informed the Captain using the phone/intercom. I had to change my clothes in the airport and bagged them. They are being washed right now. Hoping no stragglers got on my backpack or checked bag during the clothing swap. I already logged a complaint with AA.”
[LGA/DTW] Bed Bugged on Flight Today
byu/HaddawayThrowaway978 inamericanairlines
@HaddawayThrowaway978 later posted in the comments that they hoped the plane was grounded following the incident but checked and saw that it had “turned right back around to LGA and then to Tulsa!!”
That’s correct. I just looked up the flight and you can see its history on FlightAware.com. Screenshot below.
As one user pointed out, it’s not an American Airlines plane but a Republic Airways aircraft as they do a lot of their short haul flights. Redditor @burner3430, who appears to work for Republic, wrote: “Not really fair as our airplanes are maintained, cleaned, and flown to the same standard any mainline flight would be… this has to be an anomaly as I spend 16-20 days per month on those airplanes and have never seen anything suspect like that!!!”
@HaddawayThrowaway978 later said, “I never check on a plane figuring the bugs wouldn’t come out into the cabin during the day. I’m sufficiently freaked out for my flight home… hopefully not on that plane again.” They also said, “I saw the bug crawling on my pant leg while I was reading my book. It was a sharp contrast to the dark pant color. I was able to have it climb on my finger and then put it on the napkin to show the FA. Damn thing tried to bite my finger! SO GROSS!!”
To be honest, I find it quite surprising that we don’t hear more about bed bugs on airplanes on a daily basis since they’re so prevalent but they do like warmth, which is another good thing about airlines keeping their aircraft cabins so cold.
However, I did find a worrying blog post on Jet Set, a website founded by a former flight attendant. The author writes, “A growing number of bed bug infestations are occurring on American’s 777 and 787 aircraft and flight attendants at the airline are not having it — they say this issue has been festering for too long and American’s approach to dealing with it has been extremely negligent. On recent long-haul flights, crew-members have woken from rest breaks to find they’ve been ravaged by blood thirsty bed bugs; their skin covered with painful bed bug bites. Some of the attacks and contact with insecticides have been so severe that hospitalization has been required.” The article includes a quote from an American Airlines employee saying, “It’s so sad that passengers and crew have to deal with this on top of everything else!”
Shortly after posting, @HaddawayThrowaway978 posted this:
Comment
byu/HaddawayThrowaway978 from discussion
inamericanairlines
User @Magenta_Majors replied: “ewwwww they couldn’t care less :( ” and @HaddawayThrowaway978 responded, “I’m really hoping AA trolls this subreddit. It’s insulting to get a canned response like this.”
Another Reddit user asked a solid question: “I always check my hotel rooms but this is like my absolute worst fear- how do you check on an airplane?? Any easy steps to take to minimize risk?”
@kprevenew93 responded with, “Just a flashlight and obsessive desire to try and pull the chair apart for a minute before sitting in it. I brought a lint roller once but I can never remember them lol.”
According to Orkin, here’s how to tell if your hotel room (and I assume airplane seat) has bed bugs.
Use the acronym SLEEP to inspect for bed bugs:
- Survey the hotel room for signs of an infestation. Be on the lookout for tiny, ink-colored stains on mattress seams, in soft furniture and behind headboards.
- Lift and look in bed bug hiding spots: the mattress, box spring and other furniture, as well as behind baseboards, pictures and even torn wallpaper.
- Elevate luggage away from the bed and wall. The safest places are in the bathroom or on counters.
- Examine your luggage carefully while repacking and once you return home from a trip. Always store luggage away from the bed.
- Place all dryer-safe clothing from your luggage in the dryer for at least 30-45 minutes at the highest setting after you return home.
I’ve flown over a million miles on American Airlines and tens of thousands of miles on their regional jets operated by Republic Airways (which was operating this flight) and I have never seen a bed bug. I have also never looked for one but you would think that if I’d been in a seat that had bed bugs, they would have hitched a ride home and I’d know. It’s never happened and knock on wood it never does. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t going to be checking my seat obsessively every time I fly from now on. How about you?
KEEP READING
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–How to use your wireless headphones to watch in-flight movies
–10 airport security hacks every traveler should know
–How to get the best coach seat on the plane
–The sleep hack every traveler needs to know
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