SIA passenger says he was sent back to his seat twice while queuing for toilet because of “ridiculous” turbulence rules

SINGAPORE: A Singapore Airlines (SIA) passenger took to social media to express frustration with SIA’s new turbulence rules, describing them as “ridiculous” and overly cautious. He had been on a long-haul flight from JFK to SIN (SQ23), seated in business class, where he criticised the airline’s approach to fastening seat belts and restricting bathroom use during what he described as smooth flying conditions.

He lamented, online: “I feel that SIA’s new policies around fastening seat belts and prohibiting using the bathroom during turbulence has gotten absolutely RIDICULOUS. I need to poop so bad!! They keep turning on the fasten seat belt sign for every little bump.

“Whenever they turn off the fasten seatbelt sign everyone rushes to the bathroom and fills it. Twice they have made me go back to my seat and buckle my seatbelt while I’m trying to get to the bathroom. There is currently no turbulence and so smooth yet the captain won’t turn off the sign.”

The netizen noted that since SQ321, SIA has become “insanely conservative.” ​​He pointed out that although he understood the reasons behind the strict rules after a tragic flight, he noted, “a certain amount of risk is the price we pay for the convenience of air travel.”

“It’s so typical of Singapore culture,” he remarked. “Any little thing that happens, they overreact in the name of safety and security, going ultra-conservative and inconveniencing everyone just to show they’re taking action.”

“The last long haul flight I took on SIA a few weeks ago was the same. They did the same thing and I had the same experience. You pay a premium for Singapore Airlines and this is not a premium experience. I am going to take my business elsewhere until I hear that they are being more reasonable about their seatbelt policy,” the SIA passenger added.

Criticism on social media echoed similar sentiments, with one commenter attributing the strict policies to top management’s directives, enforcing stringent standard operating procedures.

Another suggested humorously, “A brave customer needs to take a stand and poop in his/her seat. That’s the only way to force change!”

Others shared the same experience. One noted how SIA has become “paranoid” since the incident.  

“Since the incident, I’ve done two round trip flights to Europe on SQ. Indeed, SQ has become paranoid. For every little bump, the crew now rushes to their seats, it feels like everyone is just waiting for the plane to plunge. On my last return flight to Singapore, they started serving dinner when we were just entering the Bay of Bengal, while normally this is done much closer to the Andaman Sea side,” he shared.

In another post, another SIA passenger pointed out if SIA is implementing “safety first or overkill” with their new turbulence policy.

However, one commenter pointed out, “no matter how smooth a flight is, turbulence can occur suddenly, and it may be too late to put on a seatbelt by then. A smooth flight doesn’t guarantee that turbulence won’t occur.” /TISG

Read also: SIA announces changes to cabin rules after May 21 turbulence fatality

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