A flight attendant ordered a knitting and embroidery influencer to put her needles down on a recent flight after making her consider the safety implications of knitting at 38,000 feet, and, well, it has the internet divided.
The influencer who goes by the name of Brittstiches on TikTok and whose first name is Brittany, shared the awkward encounter with the flight attendant in a short post that has now gone viral.
“Staring at my knitting in jail because the flight attendant told me to put it away after telling me ‘to think about if I would really want to be holding needles if there was an emergency?'” Brittany wrote in the post of a photo of her bag sat on the floor of the airplane in front of her.
A caption accompanying her post explained: “This was a first, was hoping to finish knitting my sock on this flight but guess it will have to wait.”
In response, some commentators were quick to defend Brittany, but others questioned how she even got the knitting needles past airport security in the first place.
One person wrote: “Idk [I don’t know] why people are against this, the flight attendant was fully right for this.” And another commentator mused: “That was a good tip. Flying has gotten significantly less safe in the US this year and the chances of their being an emergency are much higher than previous years.”
It might come as a surprise to some of the commentators on Brittany’s post, but the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has no problem with passengers bringing knitting needles or sewing needles in carry-on luggage.
A useful tool on the TSA’s website allows passengers to check whether specific items are allowed in carry-on luggage, checked luggage, or are completely prohibited, and the TSA gives the green light for knitting needles.
In fact, even checking international rules, including the UK, where international flight attendants will be able to tell you that it has some of the strictest security regulations in the world, allows knitting needles to be brought into the airplane cabin.
That being said, some airlines might have their own regulations, although Brittany says this isn’t the case with the unnamed carrier she flew with, explaining that she had checked the airline’s website and had never experienced any issues in the past… including just two days prior to the encounter.
It would probably be unfair to suggest that the flight attendant was on a ‘power trip’ and, while slightly overzealous, they were likely just being a little too cautious. After all, there are many everyday items that could potentially cause a safety risk, such as pens, and it would be super weird if flight attendants told passengers to stow these items for the duration of a flight, ‘just in case.’
I’ve often marveled that knitting needles were allowed but, at least for a short period, fingernail clippers were not (if they had the little sing out file). If the concern was that the little blade could be a weapon, I’d suggest that knitting needles would be a much more lethal weapon.
Safety in the event of turbulence another genuine concern.
things that make you go ‘hmmmmm”….
In my book, making up your own personal rule is by definition a power-trip, regardless of the reasoning. So many things can be a potential hazard in an emergency – heavy, blunt objects can go flying (laptops, tablets, hardcover books); hot beverages can spill and scald; a blanket could get wrapped around your feet and trip you; having no shoes on can cause injury if stepping on a sharp object, impeding prompt egress;
a champagne class could shatter and cut you; etc. If something isn’t restricted/banned by for security or safety by the applicable regulatory agencies, then it’s none of the FA’s business.