40% air travellers 'forge friendships'

The next time you intend to forge a friendship with a stranger on board a flight, don't shy away. You are not alone.

Nearly 39 per cent of air travellers have made friendships with strangers they met on a flight, with six per cent even admitting to a romantic liaison with a new acquaintance on board, according to a survey of 700 global international fliers by global travel search site Skyscanner.

While the majority of these connections were short lived, five per cent spent time on holiday together as a direct result of meeting on their flight. Taking their friendship even further, seven per cent said they continued to stay in touch after their holiday.

Social media also appears to be prolonging these longer-term relationships, with three per cent staying in touch on the social network with someone they met on a flight.

Although 57 per cent of people thought the service was "weird" and would not be using it, one in five said they would use Facebook and an inquisitive 23 per cent also said they would consider using the service.

However, the survey results show that the likelihood of friendship is far greater than that of romance with only six per cent admitting to a fling at 30,000 feet and only two per cent having a lasting relationship.

"It's clear that many travellers want to make more of their travel experience than simply getting from A to B, and our findings show that on board friendships and romances are now quite common.

"Part of the fun of travelling is meeting people, and of course this can start on the flight itself," Sam Baldwin, Skyscanner's Travel Editor, said in a release.

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