Have you ever wondered why some airline toilets seem to be a mystery to certain travelers? A former flight attendant has blown the whistle on a shocking reality: airlines are avoiding educating passengers about proper toilet etiquette out of fear of offending them!

Meet Marcus Daniels, who traded his wings for a life away from the skies in 2019 after five years of navigating the high-altitude hustle as a flight attendant in Australia and the Middle East. His experiences may just change the way you think about flying. While he enjoyed the thrill of air travel, one recurring nightmare haunted him on international flights: the messy aftermath of uneducated toilet users.

Daniels has collected a trove of cringe-worthy stories about the chaos left behind in airplane lavatories, primarily from passengers unfamiliar with Western-style toilets. “As cabin crew, you notice it happens on specific flights to specific destinations. We’ll chat and find other crew have picked up on the trend too,” he shared, a mix of disbelief and resignation in his voice.

The problem, he points out, is particularly prevalent on routes to developing countries, where passengers are less likely to have encountered Western toilets before. “On those flights, passengers will defecate on the floor, and you just do your best to smile and not say anything,” Daniels admitted. Yikes! Can you imagine the clean-up crew’s horror?

“You get used to it after a while and can start mentally preparing yourself for those flights,” he continued. Daniels explained that it’s not an issue in first-world countries, where most passengers are familiar with how to use the facilities. But language barriers complicate matters. “Most of the confused passengers don’t speak English as their first language, so we can’t really explain how to use the toilet.”

He believes that the solution lies in education. “If they knew how to use the toilets, they would,” he stated emphatically. He proposed a simple yet effective idea: visual guides showing how to properly use the toilet. “It would be great if there were visual guides showing how to use the toilet properly, rather than just guides for flushing.”

While many may envision flight attending as a glamorous job filled with jet-setting adventures, the reality can be quite messy. “On these routes, we’re having to constantly check the toilets to make sure they’re clean and the toilet rolls aren’t stuffed down the bins,” he elaborated.

Daniels recounted one particularly unforgettable incident: “On one flight, I had a passenger who kept peeing on the floor. I tried to show her how to use the toilet, and she would nod and agree, then do it again. It got to the point where it was unsanitary for me as well, so I had to lock off the toilet for the rest of the flight.”

Despite the issue being a known challenge among international cabin crew, airlines have largely turned a blind eye. “Airlines are very particular about how they communicate with customers because they don’t want to offend anyone,” Daniels explained. “However, there needs to be some kind of video or visual guide about using and keeping the toilets clean.”

He added, “It would be a dream come true. I have friends who are still working these routes, and, nine years later, it’s still an issue.”