There was a day when I was booking coworkers on a business trip when I would work very hard to get them in seats next to each other or across the aisle from each other. In the back of my mind I would wonder if I were going on the trip if I wouldn't rather just be alone where I could read my book in peace.
But it wasn't until Karen* told me when booking her flight "Please do not put me ANYWHERE near them" that I finally realized that I wasn't the only one who prefers to travel silently, finally getting the peace and quiet that is so lacking from our daily lives.
Kimberly Benzel, flight attendant for an unnamed airline, told me her company is still debating whether or not to offer wireless on flights. Why? "Very few people are willing to purchase it." Prices for wi-fi are very modest, particularly for business passengers who usually add luggage fees, upgraded seat fees and are willing to plop down $10 for a drink. My guess is that most of us find the few hours in a plane the only time we have without a ringing cell phone, emailed questions and problems, and people barraging us with chatter.
Flying is a bit of peace, a time to catch up on all the reading that we need to do for our jobs but gets interrupted when we are at our desks. Oh, and maybe we don't want to read any more white papers and flying gives us a chance to pull out our Kindles and paperbacks and read the latest Patterson novel.
What about you? Do you want to sit next to your coworker on a trip? Or do you just want the world to quit talking for two minutes?
*name has been changed for fun
I would far rather sit by myself, both in the airport and on the plane, and just read. I don't like chatting on planes, even with people I know well.
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