From stressful airport experience, to pre-flight jitters, you’ve never probably had time to realise why all passengers board airplanes from the same side.
No matter what country you visit and regardless of airline, you’ll likely always board and disembark the aircraft from the left hand side.
Food catering and luggage is then loaded on the right side of the plane, a practice that has steadfastly remained the same for decades.
But how did it come about and why don’t we ever board from the right side?
Michael Oakley, the managing editor of The Aviation Historian, has revealed exactly why, and it dates back to historical times.
He started by explaining: ‘Much of aviation terminology had its origins in maritime lore (rudder, cockpit, cabin, bulkhead, knots, etc), and similarly, the aeronautical ways of doing things owe a lot to sailing.’
The travel expert continued: ‘Just as boats and ships have a port side – the side of the vessel conventionally adjacent to the dock when in port – aircraft are the same.
‘Sensibly, people decided to continue to board on the port (or left) side.’
From stressful airport experience, to pre-flight jitters, you’ve never probably had time to realise why all passengers board airplanes from the same side
No matter what country you visit, and regardless of airline, you’ll likely always board and disembark the aircraft from the left hand side
Food catering and luggage is then loaded on the right side of the plane, a practice that has steadfastly remained the same for decades
As air travel began to quite literally take off, the practice was carried over to the industry.
However, in the 1930s, United Airlines decided to turn the process on its head, and started boarding passengers on the right-hand side of their planes.
Bosses at the airline eventually reverted back to boarding on the left as air travel became more popular and it became apparent it was more efficient.
Matthew Burchette from the Museum of Flight in Washington explained: ‘Since the pilot sits on the left, airports began to be built with gates on the left so the pilot could better judge distances as they taxied to the gate.
‘As soon as more complex airports were developed, with passengers using Jetways as a means of walking directly aboard from the terminal, ground operations were a lot easier if every aircraft did the same thing in the same direction.’
Fast forward to today, the setup means passengers can board and disembark aircraft without getting in the way of ground staff, who can work on making sure the plane is fueled and your bags are loaded on board.
Meanwhile, a China Eastern Airline flight recently turned chaotic upon landing when a passenger suddenly opened an emergency exit – claiming he wanted ‘to get some fresh air.’
Footage showed the aftermath of the random act, which saw a male passenger yank the emergency handle before deploying the evacuation slide on flight MU5828, which was still taxiing on the runway as it arrived in Kunming from Changsha on 11 May.
In the 1930s, United Airlines decided to turn the process on its head, and started boarding passengers on the right-hand side of their planes
Bosses at the airline eventually reverted back to boarding on the left as air travel became more popular and it became apparent it was more efficient
According to witnesses, the man appeared calm, but had told others he opened the door to get a breath of fresh air.
But his bizarre actions reportedly caused chaos in the cabin, and passengers were prevented from disembarking the plan for around 20 minutes as crew members dealt with the situation.
Though no one was hurt, the suspect, described as a young male, was escorted off the plane by police for further questioning, as reported by NeedToKnow.
The flight took off from Changsha, China, and arrived at Kunming Changshui International Airport at around 8.42am on 11 May.
