If you’ve ever noticed flight attendants sitting on their hands during takeoff or landing, there’s actually a very specific reason behind it — and it’s not just to warm up their fingers.
Regular travelers might have seen this posture before. As soon as flight attendants finish checking the cabin and buckle themselves in, they often place their hands underneath them.
They tend to sit this way not just during takeoff but also while taxiing and when the plane is landing.
Despite how it might look, this isn’t just a habit or something they do out of nerves. It’s a safety measure they’ve been trained to follow — and it serves a very practical purpose.
Part of their safety routine involves taking the brace position during takeoff and landing, and that includes placing their hands under their thighs.
Henny Lim, a flight attendant for Cebu Pacific in the Philippines, shared what this position involves: the seatbelt must be fastened tightly, the back should be straight, hands should be placed palms-up under the thighs, arms should stay relaxed, and feet must be flat on the floor.
“The aim is to keep the body in a rigid pose, so that if there was any impact from an unplanned emergency, the body is damaged less,” Lim told PEOPLE as she elaborated on the purpose of this practice.
“This keeps body movement restricted so that there is less chance of injury if there was an impact.”
Another cabin crew member, Anusha Pratima, shared similar thoughts in a discussion on Quora.
She explained: “While we are seated on the jumpseat during taxing, take off, approach and landing, the crew must always be alert for any dangerous situations that may occur during the flight. Hence the importance of brace positions. Brace positions restrict the movement of your limbs and spine which allows lesser damage to the body upon impact.”
However, Anusha also pointed out that safety guidelines have changed in recent years. These days, some airlines recommend crew members rest their hands on their laps instead of sitting on them.
Even so, she personally sticks with sitting on her hands — and not just for safety. There’s also a comfort factor involved.
“It’s always freezing and I need to warm my hands,” Anusha added.
For passengers, though, the brace position is slightly different in case of an emergency.
According to Simple Flying, passengers are instructed to ‘bend the upper torso well forward and place your head against the backrest of the seat in front’, which contrasts the more upright position flight attendants maintain.
Passengers are also told to ‘place hands flat to the left and right beside the head against the seat in front’ as part of their emergency brace position.
