The dirty little secrets of airlines have been revealed by those in the know.

Among plane passengers, there’s a general air of acceptance that there’s plenty going on about which we are blissfully unaware.

From staff talking in code to half-heartedly explained delays, the only thing we’re sure of is that we don’t know the full story.

So, what’s really happening on your flight?

A Reddit thread dedicated to divulging airline secrets from its staff members has revealed some interesting truths.

Here are 10 of the best:

1. Ever noticed why there are so many people in wheelchairs at the airport?

“People fake needing a wheel chair to gain boarding priority,” says user ‘tagt8er’. “10 wheelchairs get on and only 1 person needs it getting off. We call (them) miracle flights.”

2. Chicken OR beef?

“2 pilots are served different meals and cannot share, this is done in case of food poisoning,” according to ‘ichigo29’.

3. Peekapoo.

“There is a small latch hidden inside the lavatory sign on the bathroom door, which will open the door when pulled, even when it’s locked. Airplane Peekaboo!” ‘anony_meows’ says.

4. Extra space sorted.

“You know how all the other armrests can be raised except for the one next to the aisle? Turns out that one can be raised as well via a small button in a divot on the underside of the armrest. Useful if you want to spread out a bit more, though some flight attendants may tell you to put it back in place.” Some sage advice from ‘Goat_porker’.

5. Recycling is OK, but why is the word ‘cleaned’ is quotation marks…

“I used to work for a warehouse that supplied a certain airline with items. The headsets that are given to you are not new, despite being wrapped up. They are taken off the flight, “cleaned”, and then packaged again,” writes ‘ichigo29’.

6. Flight attendants know who the VIPs are.

“Flight attendants have a list of who is who and what seat they are in. As well as what level of frequent flyer they happen to be. Or if they are employees or family and friends tickets. This is why you will see them being rude to someone or bending over backwards for jerks,” says ‘paradoxofchoice’.

7. Apparently right behind the security checkpoint is a favourite coffee break spot for staff.

“This is where you will see women in a rush with their outermost garments off and bending over to put their shoes back on,” informs ‘tcpip1’. “The ‘jackpots’ are passengers that didn’t know a sweater or hoodie they are wearing had to come off until they are told to remove it by the TSA, so they have very little underneath.”

8. Airlines fly their planes differently. It’s not just in your head.

According to air traffic controller ‘PlatinumAero’, “certain airlines fly their planes differently. Southwest for example tends to climb like bats out of hell, and then request direct routing/shortcuts from us, and we are often able to approve them and send them direct, since they’re above most conflicting traffic. It’s one of their signature tricks, and it usually works. This can cut significant time off the flight, which of course has numerous advantages. In contrast, American Airlines on the other hand tends to be gentle for efficiency and passenger comfort, and they always report chop and turbulence when other guys say it’s smooth. Things like this are actually so profound, it can affect how we control traffic.”

9. There’s a huge list of things that can be missing from the aircraft while it’s still allowed to fly.

‘PiperArrown3191q’ confirms this is true. “It’s called a Minimum Equipment List (MEL). Counterintuitively, it’s a list of what can be broken on the aircraft while it still remains airworthy. It should be noted that the operational limits of the aircraft are altered to respond to broken parts. For instance, if certain lights are broken, the aircraft is restricted to daytime use.”

10. Don’t bother locking your bags.

“Locks on zippered bags are useless. You can pop a zipper with a pen and drag the locked zipper pulls around the bag to close them back up. I’ve done this many times to identify bags that are tagless and locked,” advises ‘nunswithknives’.

There we have it. The word from those in the know.

Now if only someone would explain how to get free upgrades…