If you’ve ever settled into seat 18B, queued up a movie, and suddenly caught the unmistakable scent of a tuna sandwich, you know one thing: airplane air is a shared resource.
At 30,000 feet, there’s no cracking a window or stepping outside for fresh air. Once a strong food smell enters the cabin, it tends to linger, meaning your in-flight snack can quickly become everyone’s business.
So we asked travelers on TikTok a simple question: what food should never be eaten on an airplane?
The results were…pungent.
@fayetravelinsurance TikTok, I need your help! Tell me if I’m overreacting. 🍗😭 Are there certain foods one should never eat on an airplane? #airplanetiktok #travelettiquette #airplanefood ♬ الصوت الأصلي - الشيخ لاري
Here are the three food types passengers said they would happily ban from the cabin.
1. Fish & seafood
If it swims, travelers say it should probably stay grounded.
Fish and seafood dominated the responses by a wide margin, with nearly two-thirds of commenters saying it should never be eaten on a plane. Tuna sandwiches, sardines, and anything described as “fishy” topped the list.
The issue isn’t the food itself; it’s the smell. Seafood odors travel fast in a closed cabin and tend to linger much longer than most other foods, especially when passengers are sitting shoulder-to-shoulder for hours.
One comment summed it up perfectly: “Sardines? ”Which, honestly, says it all.
2. Egg-based dishes
Eggs came in as the clear runner-up, especially egg salad.
Among commenters who mentioned a specific food, 28% said egg-based dishes were the worst possible plane snack. If fish is the king of airplane food offenses, eggs are a very close cousin.
And to whoever commented, “I always bring tuna and egg salad,” we have questions.
3. Gassy or spicy foods
About 9% of responses pointed to beans, nachos, jalapeños, and spicy dishes.
Travelers weren’t just worried about the smell. Many mentioned the uncomfortable combination of bold flavors, cabin pressure, and recycled air — a mix that can make strong foods even more noticeable during a flight.
One traveler shared a particularly unsettling experience: “sat next to a guy ages ago who was eating spicy nachos with extra jalapenos… man, no good.” In other words, bold flavors might be great on the ground, but at 30,000 feet, they can quickly become everyone’s problem.
Why do smells travel so easily on an airplane?
After reading through all the comments, one theme kept coming up: airplane food etiquette matters.
Unlike restaurants or offices, airplane cabins are sealed environments with limited airflow. Once a strong smell hits the cabin, it spreads quickly and can linger longer than travelers expect.
That shared environment is exactly why food choices become such a hot topic for travelers, as when you’re sitting shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of people in a sealed cabin, small choices can have a big impact on everyone around you. Food is one of those things that travelers become very aware of.
The unofficial rule of airplane snacks
There’s no official airline policy about what foods you can and can’t bring into the cabin. Still, many travelers seem to agree on one unwritten rule: if the smell of your food can travel three rows in either direction, it probably belongs in the airport food court rather than your carry-on bag.
So, the next time you pick your airplane snack, you might want to think twice about packing the hard-boiled eggs. Your seat neighbors will almost certainly thank you.
Travel is better when everyone plays nice
Flying already comes with enough challenges like delays, turbulence, and the occasional middle seat. The last thing travelers want is a surprise smell drifting through the cabin during a long flight.
At Faye, we may not be able to control what people pack for their airplane snacks, but we can help travelers feel more prepared when something else unexpected happens along the way. When travel goes sideways — from delays to lost luggage — having the right coverage can make all the difference.
