Look up in the sky. It's a bird. It's a plane. Yes, actually more often than not, it is indeed a plane. More people are travelling by air than ever before and, as air travel becomes more accessible, the glamour has somewhat dissipated for most of us.

It all boils down to the seat. Your seat can make or break a flight and airlines put a great deal of time and effort into getting the right configuration. But it's hard to make people happy.

Synovate surveyed air travellers in 13 markets around the world and only one third of them agreed they had no preference when it comes to seating. The least fussy were the Filipinos and the most fussy were the Thais (89% have seat preferences). At first glance, this is a little odd. Two South East Asian cultures - different, yes - but from a part of the world where people are reputedly happier and easier to please than in other places. So, why are the Thais so particular?

It all boils down to understanding the culture says Synovate's Managing Director of Thailand, Steven Britton. From a very early age Thais are taught it's the height of rudeness to step over people and will do almost anything to avoid it. Including sitting in a cramped economy window seat needing to visit the bathroom for hours.

Read more about the quirks of airline passengers here.

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