When Was Smoking Banned on Airplanes? The Story of Airline Smoking Sections
For decades, smoking on airplanes was completely normal. Passengers lit cigarettes during flights. Ashtrays were built into armrests. Flight attendants worked entire shifts surrounded by secondhand smoke. And perhaps most bizarrely, airlines often designated separate “smoking” and “non-smoking” sections—as if tobacco smoke politely stopped at Row 18 and refused to travel any farther. Welcome to …