Don't be this guy.

As Ann Arbor empties for the summer and the skies fill with planes of students returning home, off on vacation, or heading to big-city internships, air travelers should avoid the following flight faux pas:

1. Too much baggage – Yes, it sucks that airlines are now charging to check luggage, but that doesn’t mean you should try to fit the same contents into a smaller carry-on to save a few bucks. If  you have a carry-on as well as a smaller backpack, put the backpack under the seat in front of you. When every passenger on the plane is bringing a carry-on and you try to put two bags in the over-head compartment, be aware that it causes everyone to move down a row to find a bin with a free space which is rude and time consuming.

2. Ignoring the Space Bubble – One of the first things I do when I sit in my designated seat on a plane is to make sure I put the armrests down. By doing so I am establishing that that small 1.5 ft seat width (armrest to armrest) x 2.5 ft. seat pitch (leg room) is my space and I’d appreciate it if others didn’t spill over into my seat.

3. Music – It’s a great way to (try to) relax and fall into your own zone (or at least avoid talking to the person next to you), but please do not blast your music. Remember, you are still sitting claustrophobically close to many other people, and they can hear your music if it is any turned up any higher than half volume. Sorry to say this, but they do not want to listen to your music.  If you want to blast your music, invest in a pair of noise cancelling headphones.

4. Ringing the Service Bell – Only really annoying people ring the bell. What is so important that you can’t wait for one of the hundred times a flight attendant walks by to ask for what you need? If it is an emergency, then sure, go ahead, but needing more water is not an emergency. The flight attendants clearly have better things to do – like making sure the economy passengers do not try to use the bathroom reserved for the handful of first class passengers even though there is a line seven deep for the one in the back…

5. Sneezing/Coughing – The swine flu scare is still fresh in our memory. There are a lot of crazy germs out there. So, if you can’t hold back a sneeze or a cough, at least make sure that you do it in the crook of your arm. Try not to do it in your hands unless you plan on disinfecting them with hand sanitizer.

Final note: Be courteous to others and have a happy, safe  flight!