The Dangerous Reason Airplanes Still Have Ashtrays Even Though Smoking Is Banned

Smoking on airplanes is a remnant of the past, but you can still find ashtrays on board. The simple explanation is because some people are idiots and will light up despite the prohibition. If that happens, an airplane must be equipped to deal, and that means having a safe place to extinguish the smoking materials...specifically an ashtray.

The FAA has stated "The requirement for the presence of an ashtray on or near the lavatory door provides a convenient disposal location for cigarettes (or other smoking material), and thereby ensures that there is a place to dispose of such material in the event that the `no smoking' policy is not adhered to." The idea is to avoid having the smoker put their cigarette butt into the bathroom trash where it could cause a fire smoldering in all that discarded paper towel. Airplane bathrooms are gross as it is, can you imagine if there was a fire?

In the past, ashtrays were considered to be passenger conveniences. Now they are safety requirements.

The days of dressing up to take a flight where even economy passengers would dine on china plates with silverware have long ago passed into the mists of time (if you are looking for something similar now, these are five of the best in-flight dining experiences.) While it can be argued that creature comforts had to be removed in the name of budgets, looking back at pictures of plane cabins that seem positively opulent compared with what modern passengers are forced to endure, well, it can make a person nostalgic for a time before we were even born!

One of the things that (deservedly!) got left in the dust, is something most of us can't even fathom: smoking on airplanes. Even dedicated smokers will admit that sitting in the smell of stale smoke for hours at a time with no way to clear the air is less than wonderful. It does beg the question though, if it used to be safe to smoke on planes, why is it considered dangerous now? Aside from the health implications that are now (but weren't always) well-documented and acknowledged, the danger can be found in that smoking is now a clandestine activity; people have to be sneaky to do it. Furtively smoking in the bathroom and chucking the butt into the trash is a good way to start a fire.

The biggest concern about smoking on an airplane is the risk of fire. All the reasons that make smoking on the ground dangerous (lung and heart disease, cancer, breathing problems, etc.) obviously still apply on planes. On top of that, forcing flight crews to work and passengers to sit in secondhand smoke is unhealthy and uncomfortable. On an airplane there is nowhere to go to get away from it, which can be a health issue for some passengers. E-cigarettes and vapes are sometimes touted as less objectionable, but honestly, the smell of hot cotton candy clinging to you is only marginally better. To be clear, you can't vape on a plane any more than you can light up. 

Even if smoking doesn't cause a fire, the consequences can be tough. The FAA regularly refers cases of unruly passengers to the FBI and that includes cases of smoking in the lavatory and vaping. In 2021, an Allegiant Air passenger flying from Kentucky to Florida found themselves faced with a $16,700 fine for bad behavior on both legs of their journey. You guessed it, smoking included!