People are literally risking their lives for a backpack or a laptop and airlines are losing their minds trying to figure out why. Psychology studies are coming because apparently shouting “just get off the plane” wasn’t enough.
After a year of surprises and upheaval, the airline industry is hoping 2026 brings something rare: a stretch of relative calm.
Whether it gets that wish is another matter. Even in a quieter year, travelers can expect significant changes, from long-promised premium upgrades finally rolling out at scale to airports becoming more pleasant places to spend time and further consolidation reshaping the industry.
Add shifting geopolitics and a rising cost of living that is squeezing travel budgets worldwide, and the year ahead looks anything but dull.
Airlines have consulted psychologists to understand why so many passengers risk their lives by grabbing their bags during an emergency.
Mobile phone footage from recent evacuations has shown that people are increasingly pausing to recover their belongings from overhead lockers before evacuating a stricken aircraft.
This has fuelled concern among airlines, with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) warning that such behaviour will ultimately result in tragedy.
The trade body will launch a study in the next few months into the psychology underlying people’s willingness to risk their own survival and that of fellow passengers for their bags.
Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general and a former chief executive of British Airways, said the “dangerous phenomenon” had become “a more and more common feature of evacuations”.
He said: “These images are very worrying, and we intend to do more research to better understand what is happening. It’s an absolutely crazy thing to do.
“If I’m on an aircraft and it has to evacuate, I’m getting off and not waiting for anyone. There is nothing more important in your luggage than your life.”