Rawdogging flights: as bad an idea as it sounds? (2024)

Rawdogging flights: as bad an idea as it sounds? (1)

Mostly young men are posting videos of themselves describing the challenge of longhaul flights with no distractions

(Image credit: Mensent Photography / Getty Images)

By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK

published

With so much in-flight entertainment available on planes, you might wonder why on earth someone would "challenge themselves to sit in silence", said The Sun.

But a new trend known as "rawdogging" a flight – no phones, no films, no reading or distraction of any kind – is "taking the world of social media by storm", said the paper. The term went viral in May after a 26-year-old Londoner posted on TikTok about spending a seven-hour trip watching only the flight map. "Anyone else bareback flights?" he asked.

The trend "crossed over into mainstream conversations" after Manchester City footballer Erling Haaland posted a picture of himself on a plane, said The Daily Mail. He claimed to have made it through a seven-hour flight with "no phone no sleep no water no food only map". It was "#easy", added the young Norwegian – though he looked "pale and almost robotic", said the paper.

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'The opportunity to recharge mentally'

Once slang for sex without a condom, the term "rawdogging" is used online to mean doing something without protection or support – the hard way, said the BBC. Increasing numbers of "mostly athletic young men" are posting videos of themselves "rawdogging" flights, perhaps to showcase their ability to "handle solitude and discomfort with stoicism".

The trend implies "a collective yearning for balance as people seek to reclaim their mental space and foster a deeper connection with their inner selves", said business psychologist Danielle Haig. In our fast-paced world, rawdogging "offers an opportunity to recharge mentally".

The "visceral, shocked reaction" to the trend is understandable, said Sadhbh O'Sullivan for the i news site. But modern life contains a "constant barrage" of stimulation. Once I stopped wearing headphones, I found myself thinking peacefully. I felt engaged with the world and looked at my phone less. Now I am content to sit with my "whirring" brain, and chase particular trains of thought once "drowned out by a comedy podcast".

Being alone with my thoughts has become a "treat, not a punishment". Forget flights – I'm "rawdogging life". "And frankly, I am loving it."

'I've never been so bored'

But this is nothing new, after all. "Young, internet-dwelling men" seem to think they "invented self-restraint", said Guy Kelly in The Daily Telegraph. But these "tough nuts" remind me of "stylites", said Christopher Howse in the same paper – 5th-century religious "ascetics" who sat on pillars during the early Byzantine Empire days. "Silent, fasting and weatherbeaten, but a bit show-offy."

Experts have warned that taken to extremes – i.e. no standing, eating or drinking during a longhaul flight – can lead to dehydration, fatigue and even deep vein thrombosis. "They're idiots," GP Gill Jenkins told the BBC. "A digital detox might do you some good, but all the rest of it is against medical advice."

This trend has simply become "the latest way for men to prove their masculinity", said The Guardian's Rich Pelley. Or perhaps the gender divide might be because "women simply wouldn't be that stupid". Without headphones, all thoughts revert to: "Are we nearly there yet?" – like a five-year-old.

After rawdogging a six-hour Megabus journey, one thing's for sure: "I've never been so utterly bored in my entire life".

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Harriet Marsden, The Week UK

Harriet Marsden is a writer for The Week, mostly covering UK and global news and politics. Before joining the site, she was a freelance journalist for seven years, specialising in social affairs, gender equality and culture. She worked for The Guardian, The Times and The Independent, and regularly contributed articles to The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New Statesman, Tortoise Media and Metro, as well as appearing on BBC Radio London, Times Radio and “Woman’s Hour”. She has a master’s in international journalism from City University, London, and was awarded the "journalist-at-large" fellowship by the Local Trust charity in 2021.

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Rawdogging flights: as bad an idea as it sounds? (2024)

FAQs

What does rawdogging a flight mean? ›

It's called 'raw-dogging,' a new trend that's blowing up on the social media platform, particularly among males, requiring people to sit through a long-haul flight with zero distractions or forms of entertainment. This means no phones, movies, music, books or even sleep, food and water.

What are the rules for raw dogging flights? ›

For the uninitiated, raw dogging refers to flyers forgoing in-flight entertainment, including movies and movies, as well as avoiding necessities such as food, water and sleep.

Why are people rawdogging flights? ›

It's just white noise.” But West and others have also come to see rawdogging flights as a kind of challenge, like the Tough Mudder or No Nut November, the goal being to see how fully participants can deprive themselves of creature comforts, up to and including free snack and drinks and even bathroom visits.

What are the rules for Rawdogging? ›

It's called “rawdogging” and refers to the practice, in some measure, of adopting a monk-like asceticism whilst flying. The minimum expectation is that participants abstain from most all forms of entertainment in the air: no movies or television use, nor music through the free earbuds.

Is raw dogging a flight good? ›

Experts told Fortune that—unlike your usual mindfulness exercises—raw dogging is dangerous because people are doing it for a badge of honor online, instead of to actually switch off, and therefore taking meditating to the extreme.

Can you sleep while raw dogging a flight? ›

Rather unfortunately coined "raw-dogging", the viral act involves travellers going without entertainment, food, and even sleep on long-haul flights. Instead, some only permit themselves to watch the flight's travel path, while others don't even do that, seeing how long they can last without doing anything.

What is the risk of raw dogging? ›

The cabin air is very dry and can be dehydrating. Similarly, not taking a loo break for the sake of rawdogging a long-haul flight is worrisome. “Forgoing sleep, sustenance, and hydration during lengthy flights can have detrimental effects on overall well-being.

What is the longest raw dogging? ›

Last week, Damion Bailey posted on Instagram that he had just achieved his “personal best” – a 13-and-a-half hour flight between Shanghai and Dallas without any in-flight entertainment, films, books or music.

What is the rawdogging flight trend? ›

Despite the name, the self-imposed endurance challenge has nothing to do with joining the mile-high club. “Rawdogging”, TikTok's latest travel trend, requires plane passengers to sit silently and screen-free on long-haul stints in the sky. Flight cancellations soar as peak season begins.

What is raw dog travel? ›

A new travel phenomenon has swept TikTok in the form of 'rawdogging,' which means consuming no form of entertainment during a flight - except for the basic maps or data shown on the seatback screen. Taking it to greater extremes, some will also claim to forgo food and drink for the duration of the journey.

What are four reasons people are afraid of flying? ›

These are: remembering a bad flight, hearing scary stories about flying, taking a flight while feeling nervous or claustrophobic, or traveling during a personally stressful phase in their life.

How bad is flying with COVID? ›

Air travel

Because of the high air flow and air filter efficiency on airplanes, most viruses such as the COVID-19 virus don't spread easily on flights. Wearing masks on planes has likely helped lower the risk of getting the COVID-19 virus on flights too.

What is rawdogging slang for? ›

While raw dogging originated as slang for unprotected sex, it's become shorthand for doing anything without usual preparation.

What does it mean to raw dog a flight? ›

It's called “raw-dogging flights” and it's exactly what you think it means. It's the hardcore art of boarding a flight without earphones, music, entertainment, snacks, water—anything that makes the experience remotely tolerable.

What does dogging mean? ›

dogging in British English

(ˈdɒɡɪŋ ) noun. British slang. the practice of carrying out or watching sexual activities in semi-secluded locations such as parks or car parks.

What does flight mean in gymnastics? ›

Flight elements include elements with visible flight: - From HB to grasp on LB (or reverse) - With counter flight (over the bar), vault, hecht or salto followed by regrasp on same bar or the other bar. - Performed as dismounts. Note: Hop-grip changes with/without 180° - 360° turns do NOT constitute flight.

What does flight mean std? ›

Scheduled time of departure (STD) is a term that is normally not used in an operational environment. It is mostly of interest to passengers. When this information is presented on a public display (e.g. at an airport's terminal), local time (either standard or summer) is to be used in a 24-hour format.

What is a churning flight? ›

Churning is any repeated booking or canceling of the same itinerary in the same class or different classes of service across one or more passenger name records (PNR) without limitation, to circumvent or extend ticket time limits or hold inventory.

What is deboarding a plane? ›

Deplaning refers to the process of passengers exiting an aircraft after it has landed and reached its designated gate at the airport. It is a crucial phase of air travel, during which passengers disembark and continue their journey either within the airport terminal or to their final destination.

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