I realize that giving these kinds of people attention is part of the problem, but a few OMAAT readers have now flagged this (thanks to Konrad, Liam, and Jake), so let me share my (perhaps controversial?) take.
In this post:
Traveler “wakes up” shirtless in Emirates business class
An influencer with well over a million followers across social media platforms posted a video of himself flying Emirates business class, seemingly from New York (JFK) to Milan (MXP) on the Emirates Airbus A380.
The video shows him waking up shirtless (and for that matter, there’s no sign of pants either, but I’m assuming that’s just intentional camera angles). After waking up, he goes through is morning routine, with the following commentary:
“Here’s my business class morning routine flying Emirates. Blessed to be waking up horizontal. First I greeted the boys, then I headed to the bathroom to freshen up, outfitted myself, little brush of the pearls, popped on my lenses. I was ready for breakfast. I ordered the crepe and it was unbelievable. It was about an hour left in the flight, tossed on a movie, and enjoyed the rest of the trip. Peace.”
You shouldn’t sleep shirtless on a plane, but…
As you’d expect, the video is getting a ton of comments across platforms, with responses being overwhelmingly negative, and people telling the guy to put a shirt on.
Yes, you absolutely should wear a shirt at all times while on a plane. There are very limited exceptions. One would obviously be if showering in Emirates’ A380 first class, as it’s then perfectly acceptable to take your shirt off. 😉
Beyond that, I’d say there should be no objections to taking off your shirt if you’re flying in a first class suite offering full privacy, like Emirates’ “Game Changer” first class, or Air France’s La Premiere first class. It’s not that I think it’s actually “appropriate” to sleep without a shirt on a plane, but as I see it, if nobody knows about it, then it shouldn’t be anyone else’s concern.
But here’s where my take perhaps gets a bit more controversial. I imagine this guy wasn’t actually sleeping shirtless, but instead, just briefly took his shirt off to film this video, in order to make it more interesting (and it worked!).
So I’ll defend him to this extent — the guy didn’t harm anyone else by doing this, and at least he seems to have a positive vibe, based on the videos I’ve seen. Shortly before the above video, he posted the below video of himself walking into the Emirates Lounge JFK, excited to “demolish their buffet.”
Honestly, we live in an era where so many influencers try to negatively dramatize things, exploit others, or just generally espouse really negative and hateful beliefs. So if this guy wants to be positive and make people laugh or smile, then I hardly find this to be the most offensive thing I’ve seen.
What would offend me more than the actual shirtless part is if he had used any sort of a bright light to film this, since that would’ve certainly been more disruptive to other passengers. So yeah, I’m not trying to say I agree with what this guy did, but I’ve seen a lot worse, and this seems harmless enough…
Bottom line
An influencer posted a video of himself waking up shirtless in Emirates’ A380 business class. As you’d expect, the response was overwhelmingly negative, with most people telling him to put a shirt on.
Yes, you absolutely shouldn’t sleep shirtless on a plane (unless you have a suite where no one would know), but I view this as just being for humor or shock factor, and it’s not like anyone else was harmed in the filming of this. So on the scale of unacceptable influencer “stunts” pulled on planes, I’ll rank this pretty low, and I’d say he’s at least less obnoxious and not as harmful as a certain vlogger sharing his experiences on airlines…
What do you make of this shirtless Emirates business class influencer situation?
Nobody needs to be shirtless on an airplane.
However Aaron, far too many can be found sh*t faced on an aeroplane …. :-)
What a Total Dumbass. He might as well rebrand to "Mr. Tony Tiny Nipples".
If I had been onboard and had some clamps, I would have been happy to asssit by applying said clamps to his nasty little nippers. That would certainly be a RUDE AWAKENING!
If it's ok for this guy can sleep shirtless, then why does everyone freak out I walk around barefoot in the economy lavatory?
Is that you, RFK, Jr.?
Seems to me he is compensating for something... shall we say... tiny?
You seem to have an obsession with penises, "Dick Cocksmith".
Spend a little time trying to grow up.
The breakfast crepe was unbelievable? Really?
Unbelievably bad?
Who follows these people and more to the point why? Are young people so devoid of any sense of self actualization they have to live vicariously through some moron going shirtless on a flight?
We all wasted time in our youth. Were you reading classics in your most hormonal years?
Brady Bunch
Leave it to Beaver
...
harmless and nice to look at. bring it on.
He is pretty hot. Just sayin
I need to sleep naked on Turkish. It's time you write an article on how HOT they keep their cabins. Honestly I love the airline but I can stand the temperature.
Parnel, if true, you are insane and a flight safety risk.
Your inability to spot sarcasm/humor is concerning.
To whom are you referring BigT?
If it is AeroB13a, then it is you who has failed to understand the “Sarcasm and humour”. Please note the correct spelling of humour, yes?
Honestly after witnessing a middle age European guy changing in and out of his pajama - yes both top and bottom on an EVA Air non-enclosed business class 787 suite on a recent flight, this guy does not offend me at all. At least he is ripped.
Of course with that body, I am certainly more forgiving, but seriously, it is hard for F/A to enforce all kind of rules. it is clear that...
Honestly after witnessing a middle age European guy changing in and out of his pajama - yes both top and bottom on an EVA Air non-enclosed business class 787 suite on a recent flight, this guy does not offend me at all. At least he is ripped.
Of course with that body, I am certainly more forgiving, but seriously, it is hard for F/A to enforce all kind of rules. it is clear that this guy is just doing it briefly for the clicks and I am sure some F/As will say something they notice that he sleeps shirtless. On a dark cabin, I don't think anyone will notice it.
Those "camera angles" are deliberate. Those + shirtless = #thirsttraps
There is a safety issue here for this dude. In the thankfully unlikely event of a fire or evacuation, exposed skin offers zero protection from cuts, burns, etc. This is why I always wear long pants and "real" shoes with socks (no sandals) even if I'm flying somewhere tropical. If he's actually sleeping shirtless, had to be woken up during an emergency, and had to put a shirt on, that's precious time wasted.
And yes,...
There is a safety issue here for this dude. In the thankfully unlikely event of a fire or evacuation, exposed skin offers zero protection from cuts, burns, etc. This is why I always wear long pants and "real" shoes with socks (no sandals) even if I'm flying somewhere tropical. If he's actually sleeping shirtless, had to be woken up during an emergency, and had to put a shirt on, that's precious time wasted.
And yes, it makes a difference that he's nice to look at. It makes the discussion more abstract (should this be permitted/condoned) and less personal (look at that slob).
Finally, one commentator gets it …. Flight Safety!
Only experienced aviators or ex-military personnel appreciate inflight safety regulations.
Guess you haven't seen the OF models getting naked in the first class suites yet.
Would your opinion be different if he wasn't ripped
@ chris w -- Absolutely not. Maybe he was trying to thirst trap, but to me this was about humor, and that doesn't come down to whether someone is "eye candy" or not.
This lmao
A million followers ? but how many neurons ?
@McCaron - a few neurons short of an earthworm segmental ganglion.
'Beyond that, I’d say there should be no objections to taking off your shirt if you’re flying in a first class suite offering full privacy...if nobody knows about it, then it shouldn’t be anyone else’s concern.'
How far would you go? Would you have any objections with someone sleeping fully nude?
@ ChampagneSocialist -- It's a totally fair question, and sometimes it's hard to figure out where to draw the line. My point is to say that personally I don't care what anyone else chooses to do, as long as they're not harming others.
So if someone sleeps in the nude and no one sees them, then it doesn't really matter to me. After all, bedding is washed and changed between each passenger.
That being said,...
@ ChampagneSocialist -- It's a totally fair question, and sometimes it's hard to figure out where to draw the line. My point is to say that personally I don't care what anyone else chooses to do, as long as they're not harming others.
So if someone sleeps in the nude and no one sees them, then it doesn't really matter to me. After all, bedding is washed and changed between each passenger.
That being said, I'd say that probably crosses the line, because there are situations where the crew might have to check on someone, because the seatbelt sign goes on, or whatever.
In most parts of society, a man being shirtless isn't considered offensive, in the sense that you'll see that at a beach or a pool. Meanwhile nudity is viewed differently.
Again, personally I'd never take my shirt off on a plane (other than in a shower), but I'm just respecting the principle of thinking that if you're not harming or inconveniencing others, it doesn't matter.
Simon Wilson who usually sleeps with his shirt off, left his shirt on in The Residence in his latest video! lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RuZ4MBcxiw
An idiot followed by a million other idiots. What a surprise.
100000000000000000000000 percent true! Tony.....You seem to be the only sane person here
"unless you have a suite where no one would know" is the correct answer.
Maybe he was just hiding his flat as$, otherwise a nice body jk
That “I” word again …. Influencer, more self seeking numpties looking for website clicks.
Sorry to say this, but Ben is promoting him as well
Pepe, you are of course absolutely correct, however, in Ben’s defence …. his clicks equals points. Points make flights and flights lead to reviews. Most of us really appreciate Ben’s flight reviews and are willing to indulge his promotional activities to enjoy his reviews.
Don't call me Pepe, you creep.