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Home » Travel » Sitting Next to a Pipe Smoker
Travel

Sitting Next to a Pipe Smoker

Matthew Klint Posted onJanuary 19, 2018November 14, 2023 16 Comments

a man with a beard smoking a pipe

I could smell it many paces away…my seatmate from Doha to Ho Chi Minh City was not just a smoker, but a pipe smoker. The smell was distinct and unmistakable.

And while I prefer the smell of smoke from a corn cob pipe over that of a cigarette, cigar, or especially marijuana, such a strong smell in a confined place is just unpleasant.

It was the sort of the smell that leads to quick headaches and at least causes me to breathe out of my mouth rather than my nose. And this was a 7hr,35min international flight…

My solution was simple: the flight was less than half full and I asked a FA if I could move to an open row. I did not even have to insult the man…there was enough space for every passenger to have their own section of two aboard Qatar’s A330-330 in a 2-2-2 configuration.

But what if the flight had been full? Like my marijuana-drenched seatmate in California, what if there was no escape?

> Read More: Sky High: My Stoned, Stinky Seatmate

The difficulty is not so much in passengers who smell like they haven’t showered in weeks…I believe there is universal agreement on how unacceptable that is. But what about passengers who just subjectively smell bad…too much cologne or tobacco?

Should seat mates have any recourse? Or must they just grin and bear it?

Again, I plead with fellow passenger: keep your smells to yourself, even if you think they are not offensive.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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16 Comments

  1. WR Reply
    January 19, 2018 at 9:27 pm

    Almost as annoying as sitting next to a crying child.

    • chris Reply
      January 19, 2018 at 10:52 pm

      Touche,

    • Christian Reply
      January 20, 2018 at 5:09 am

      +1

  2. tda Reply
    January 19, 2018 at 9:32 pm

    The problems is that most people will be “nose blind” to their own smell. Unless someone tells them they reek (itself a certain breach of protocol), the offending party may not even know.

  3. MeanMeosh Reply
    January 19, 2018 at 10:06 pm

    I come up with the same answer that I gave a few days ago – commercial flights are public transportation, so unfortunately you don’t get to choose your seatmates. I’d say you’re SOL if you have a smelly seatmate in a full cabin, however unpleasant that is. Just like I was when I got stuck to sitting next to a woman screaming into her cell phone about her hemorrhoids on a full train coming back from work…

  4. Chris Reply
    January 19, 2018 at 10:26 pm

    It’s a tough issue. My level of discomfort would probably be the same as yours. I haven’t run into the problem, but I am traveling on Qatar in J on the A359 (hoping for -1000 equipment change) and A332 later this year. I was on a United flight in J when passengers in economy were thrown off the plane. I had my headphones on and was somehow oblivious. The woman across the aisle told me what was happening. I think the solution is to allow passengers who have to sit next to someotlike that some free opioids. Wait, that’s not legal?!

  5. Yo Mama Reply
    January 19, 2018 at 10:37 pm

    Almost as annoying as sitting next to an entitle millennial blogger who had never worked and honest day in his life.

    • Jimmy Reply
      January 20, 2018 at 5:02 am

      Being jealous about someone else’s success hurts so much, right ‘Yo Mama’? 😉

    • Evan Reply
      January 20, 2018 at 1:34 pm

      @Yo Mama -Ha! That did make me laugh! -Sorry Jimmy but You know Yo Mama has just as much right to be annoyed…. this and the subject of the article are entirely subjective after all.

  6. 121Pilot Reply
    January 20, 2018 at 8:10 am

    This isn’t even remotely the same as flying with a child. Small children are not little adults and even with the best of parents and the best of plans they can get tired and cranky and behave in ways that impinge on those around them. Its not unlike turbulence when flying. Your airline would love for your flight to be glass smooth every time and as a pilot we do our best to make that happen. But nature being what it is sometimes the ride gets choppy and there is nothing we can do about it. It is simply a part of life.

    Adults are a different story. We should be able to expect common courtesy from other adults. One aspect of that is not being offensive smelling. To come into a confined “public” space like an airplane smelling strongly of anything is rude to those around you. As an adult it’s fair to expect that you should know better.

  7. JoeMart Reply
    January 20, 2018 at 11:51 am

    Wearing a N95 high filtration mask sprayed with your chosen essential oil fragrance should send the message loud and clear.

  8. BlueMountain Reply
    January 20, 2018 at 12:06 pm

    This happened to me once when I flew Turkish Airlines from IST to JFK. I have the window seat but the passenger to my left (seated on aisle) has strong cologne. When it was announced that the door is already closed, I looked around and found 1 seat at the last row (middle section). Was able to move when I told the FA I‘m not comfortable seating in window seat.

  9. BlueMountain Reply
    January 20, 2018 at 12:06 pm

    This happened to me once when I flew Turkish Airlines from IST to JFK. I have the window seat but the passenger to my left (seated on aisle) has strong cologne. When it was announced that the door is already closed, I looked around and found 1 seat at the last row (middle section). Was able to move when I told the FA I‘m not comfortable sitting in window seat.

  10. Dan Reply
    January 20, 2018 at 1:43 pm

    I follow a dickensian approach of a scented kerchief held to my nose. Bons points: it goes great with my top hat/walking stick, and no one bats an eye when I mutter snidely about the great unwashed!

    • Paolo Reply
      January 23, 2018 at 10:55 pm

      Indeed. Or alternatively a nosegay or a vinaigrette, sadly both now out of fashion and in any case better suited to fend off the pong of the unwashed rather than tobacco.

  11. Andy K Reply
    January 23, 2018 at 6:48 pm

    I cannot corroborate this online but I remember seeing in a documentary about the 777 that the ventilation system was specially designed to counteract passenger odor. Can anyone else comment on this?

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