Airline staff reveal industry's biggest secrets

See also: What flight attendants are really thinking about plane passengers

Another user who says they work for an airline gave some insight into the age-old debate about when is the cheapest time to buy a flight – and apparently it's Tuesday afternoons.

A more morbid insight came from one user who said: "Almost every commercial flight… has a dead body on-board. Possibly two if you're on a wide, body aircraft."

Somewhat peculiarly, the top rated comment in the thread was about what happens when you fly with your pet.

"If you checked your dog, there's about a 30 per cent chance it's terrified before it even gets on the plane," the user said. "Who knows how scared it gets during the actual flight. Bag room agents will usually try to comfort a scared animal but all we can really do is talk to it, so if you write your pet's name on their carrier it usually helps a lot."

The user added: "I've never seen a cat who was scared in the bag room, cats don't give a ****."

And finally, a secret that should be true of not just the aviation business, but life. One user said: "If you're nice to people, they'll be nice back to you."

See also: Flight attendants reveal their mid-air secrets

Five more airline secrets

Emergency landings happen all the time

Rather than being the rarity you might presume, figures released last month revealed that Heathrow Airport alone experiences around one emergency landing a week. Fifty-one occurred in 2013, 40 in 2012, 54 in 2011, 66 in 2010, and 55 in 2009 – a total of 266 in five years.

Economy class seats are safer

The majority of studies suggest that, in the event of a crash, those sat at the front of an aircraft - traditionally where premium-class seating is found - are more likely to die. You will also raise your chances of survival if you are within a few rows of an emergency exit.

See also: The most popular seat on a plane isn't the safest

Planes are often struck by lightning

According to Patrick Smith, an airline pilot and author of Cockpit Confidential: "Planes are hit by lightning more frequently than you might expect - an individual jetliner is struck about once every two or three years on average - and are designed accordingly. The energy does not travel through the cabin electrocuting the passengers; it is discharged overboard through the plane's aluminium skin, which is an excellent electrical conductor. Once in a while there's exterior damage - a superficial entry or exit wound - or minor injury to the plane's electrical systems, but a strike typically leaves little or no evidence."

See also: What happens when you fly into a storm

Airlines manipulate flight times to improve punctuality

While denied by airlines, that's what a AirTran Airways pilot told Reader's Digest magazine in 2013. "No, it's not your imagination: Airlines really have adjusted their flight arrival times so they can have a better record of on-time arrivals," he said. "So they might say a flight takes two hours when it really takes an hour and 45 minutes."

Airport staff drink your confiscated alcohol

That was what Jason Harrington, a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer from 2007-2013, claimed last year in a candid confession for the website Politico. (A Gatwick spokesman denies that any such activity takes place on British shores, it should be noted).Harrington also claimed that staff, until 2010, profiled passengers based on their nationality, and, until technological advances made the images less revealing, technology would laugh and gawk at pictures of naked passengers on full body scanners.

The questions you've always wanted to ask

Why do window blinds need to be open for take-off and landing?

In the unlikely event of an evacuation during take-off or landing, we need to ensure that we can get everyone out as quickly as possible. Having the window blinds open gives us a clear view outside of the aircraft to any possible dangers and helps increase everyone's spatial awareness.

Why are the cabin lights dimmed for take-off and landing?

Again, it's for safety - the cabin lights being dimmed allows the human eye to adapt to the outside environment, allowing you to see better where you're going in the event of an emergency.

Why do you board kids and customers with mobility issues first?

Giving customers with reduced mobility, as well as families, a few minutes to settle in before other customers arrive not only helps make their journey more comfortable, but also allows a faster and more efficient boarding process with fewer hold-ups for all other customers. When we disembark often it's the other way round - customers with reduced mobility wait until last.

Why don't you always use both front and rear doors to disembark?

This is a very frequent question. Disembarking from the back means using steps rather than an air bridge (the tunnel linking the front of the aircraft to the terminal). Often, if we use steps we require buses to take customers over to the terminal building, therefore it may feel like you're moving quicker, but you do then have to wait on a bus, so it's a bit of a false economy.

When is it ok to use the call bell?

We always want customers to have the best on-board experience and when you really do need something, a call bell is a great way to grab our attention. Call bells do have a very important use on board - primarily they are intended for emergencies such as medical situations.

Where is the best place to dispose of a nappy?

Nappies are most definitely not at the top of crew members' favourite items to be handled! Each of our toilets has a waste bin and this will do just fine when disposing of dirty nappies.

The Telegraph, London

See also: 10 weird things you didn't know about flying

See also: What it takes to be a flight attendant