Remote Working Tips on an Aeroplane
WFA: Working from Aeroplane
Working on a plane sounds brilliant in theory. “Six uninterrupted hours, I’ll smash through my inbox, write a chapter of my book, maybe even learn Spanish.” In reality? You’re squashed into a seat designed for someone the size of a Borrower, your neighbour’s elbow is slowly invading your ribs, and the Wi-Fi (if it exists) costs more than your ticket.
Still, with the right prep and a bit of tactical thinking, plane time can be surprisingly productive. Here’s how to make the most of working while hurtling through the sky in a glorified tin can.
Prep Before Take-Off
The number one rule: assume you won’t have Wi-Fi. Yes, airlines love to plaster “Wi-Fi available” on their websites, but in practice it’s slow enough to make dial-up look like fibre. Download everything you’ll need in advance: documents, reference files, podcasts, that one email chain you keep forgetting. If you use Google Docs, hit the “available offline” toggle before you leave.
Think of it as creating your very own offline bunker: you’ll thank yourself when you’re not sat glaring at a loading bar over the Atlantic.
Pro tip: tell your colleagues you’ll be offline. Stick an “In the air, back later” note on Slack and enjoy the sweet freedom of not being chased for “just a quick thing” mid-flight.
Pack Like a Airbourne Remote Working Pro
Your tray space is small, unworkably small, so don’t waste it (we are talking economy class here btw). Flying essentials:
Laptop/tablet + charger – obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people forget the charger.
Portable battery pack – because the power outlet under your seat is probably broken.
Noise-cancelling headphones – the difference between focused deep work and “I can recite Frozen 2 word for word thanks to the kid behind me.”
Notebook & pen – never runs out of battery, doubles up as passive-aggressive scribbling when someone reclines into your lap.
Pack it all in an easy-access pouch so you’re not doing yoga poses in the aisle trying to fish a cable out of the overhead locker.
Choose Your Seat Wisely
Window seat = fewer interruptions and something to lean on.
Aisle seat = freedom to get up and stretch without apologising to two strangers every time.
There’s no perfect answer. Just don’t pick the seat right next to the loos unless you want a constant parade of people brushing past your elbow.
What to Work On Without Wi-Fi
Here’s the golden rule: don’t try to do work that needs constant internet. Instead, tackle the stuff you never quite get around to on the ground.
Inbox clear-out – reply, draft, delete. Nothing new is coming in, so you might actually reach inbox zero for once.
Admin – tidy your desktop, rename files, update that to-do list that’s 40% lies.
Writing – reports, blog posts, social media calendar, even that novel you keep threatening to write. Planes are brilliant for distraction-free typing.
Coding – if you’ve set up a local dev environment, you can write, refactor, or document code without needing GitHub.
Design/creative – sketch ideas on paper, tinker with offline tools, or storyboard something new.
Learning – ebooks, downloaded articles, audiobooks, or a course you grabbed from LinkedIn Learning before boarding.
Basically: anything you can do offline, do it here. Save the Slack pings and live dashboards for when you’re back on the ground.
Don’t Forget Your Body
Productivity nosedives if you’re hungry, dehydrated, or sat like a pretzel. Eat something sensible before you board, bring snacks (nuts > crisps), and keep sipping water. Cabin air is drier than a Ryanair sandwich.
Get up and move every hour or so, even a quick stretch in the aisle helps. And if you’re shattered? Sleep. There’s no medal for forcing yourself to write code when your eyes are closing.
Final Approach
Working on a plane isn’t about cramming in a normal workday at altitude. It’s about cherry-picking the kind of tasks that thrive offline and using the enforced internet detox to your advantage.
So next time you’re buckled in with your tray table down, don’t just resign yourself to another film you’ve already seen. Fire up the laptop, put the headphones on, and enjoy the weirdly productive bubble that only exists 30,000 feet above ground.
