A PILOT has revealed the simple item every passenger should buy at the airport before a flight.
There are many ‘travel essentials’ available to buy – but missing on a useful item can make your journey less enjoyable.
Jumping into a plane without it can leave you dehydrated and can even make you sick.
The thing pilot Jeanie Carter from aviation company Wheels Up swears by is a bottle of water.
Because of current restrictions, it is not allowed through airport security.
So passengers are expected to snap up one at the airport before stepping into their plane.
Mr Carter told the HuffPost: “I always stop at the market or anywhere that sells bottled water and take my own onboard.”
The experienced pilot warned drinks are not always available on board.
He added: “On commercial flights, I’ve found there are times when the flight attendants are unable to serve any refreshments due to either a very short flight or reported turbulence.
“Which would make it unsafe for the flight attendants to have the carts in the aisles.”
To avoid getting thirsty for hours, he recommends to buy a beverage or load up a refillable water bottle at the airport before boarding.
Sometimes flight attendants provide free cups of tab water, but it’s not always the best quality.
Other flight attendants have warned against drinking water on planes, revealing that the tank is kept in is rarely cleaned.
Responding to a post on Reddit, the flight crew members revealed that people asking them to refill their personal water bottles is becoming annoyingly common.
One described those passengers as “selfish and cheap” and explained that there is only a certain amount of water on the plane.
In a video on TikTok, cabin crew member Cierra Mistt said: “Unless we’re super desperate, we will not drink the coffee or tea that’s supplied on the plane.
“The water that we use for the coffee and the tea come from the same spot, and guess what? It never gets cleaned.
Although the airlines tell passengers that they do “regular water quality tests,” Cierra said this isn’t as frequent as you think.
“We are told that it is about 6-9 months for even one test on one plane to happen, and they’re not going to clean out that tank unless they find something.”
It comes as holidaymakers were warned that they could be prevented from entering certain countries, even if their passport still hasn’t expired.
Experts at Travel Republic are advising travellers to check when their passport is due to expire, as well as the rules for the destination they’re heading to.
Meanwhile, a flight attendant revealed why passengers should be banned from wearing headphones on planes, and it could save your life.