Passenger shamed for disgusting barefoot act: Is it ever OK to go sockless?

Soles bared: Shoes and socks should not be optional say disgusted passengers. Photo / Getty Images

A passenger has been publicly shamed for the disgusting act of removing dead skin from their foot mid-flight. Apart from outrage, it has also sparked a debate on whether it is ever acceptable to remove your shoes on a plane.

Footage shared to the Instagram account @Passengershaming shows the culprit attempting a pedicure on a plane. "Pro Travel Tip: The key word in 'personal grooming' is PERSONAL," reads the caption.

The unnamed passenger was filmed using a file to remove dead skin from the callus of their foot.

Many travellers agreed that this should not be attempted in public, let alone while using another passenger's seat as a footrest.

"Honestly this should get you put on the no-fly list immediately," read one comment.
Others said such a gross public display should be an "arrestable offence".

A passenger was shamed for removing dry skin from their feet mid-flight. Photo/ Passengershaming; Instagram

The feeling of air between your toes and warm sun on your feet is succour for the sole. But taking your shoes off can wait until the beach.

There is little reason why a passenger would need to fly with bare feet. Removing toenails, dead skins or scabs is right out.
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Even with little regards for public decency there are other reasons - beyond good manners - to wear shoes on a plane.

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Public hygiene is one. Recently, flight attendant Beth Windsor listed going barefoot as one of her 10 biggest mistakes made by passengers in an interview for Insider. Floors and carpets are some of the dirtiest areas on a busy plane. Going sockless can leave you prone to foot infections.

That goes double for plane toilets. Turbulence and the cramped confines of the WCs can lead to all sorts of leaks on the cabin floor, says Windsor.

"It can cause a mess that you probably don't want to step into, especially not with bare feet."

Socks on a plane

In New Zealand we have a fairly laid back in respect to where and when we take our shoes and socks.

There are few places where Kiwis wouldn't go Barefoot. At the park, tramping, even at the shops - lack of shoes is no impediment. But this tolerance for bare toes doesn't translate abroad.

The national airline Air New Zealand asks travellers to keep their toes covered for "health and safety reasons." Although, this is difficult to enforce.

The airline's Wellbeing Guide says that it passengers often take shoes off to counter the side effects of to long-haul flights in pressurised cabins.

"It is not uncommon for passengers to remove their shoes to alleviate the potential discomfort of normal swelling during flight, it is however a requirement that passengers must wear safe, appropriate footwear for boarding and disembarking."

Podiatrist Ebonie Vincent was recently interviewed by the Washington Post on the topic. She advised travellers to keep their shoes on, at all costs.

"You could pick up fungus, not to mention the millions of germs and bacteria that you could transfer to carpets, inside hotel rooms or homes and cars."

That's what jandals were invented for.