As a flight attendant I have learned how to pack for a four day trip in 10 minutes flat managing to get all of it in one small roller board suitcase. Of course here are some obvious items one should never travel without, like your tooth brush and clean underwear. However, there are items that even frequent flyers seem to forget while traveling. To ensure pleasant air travel I have listed below a few items you should never get on an airplane with out:

One, A sweater. Always bring a sweater or soft jacket with you. Airplanes get cold once you go above 10,000 ft and the cabin temperature is hard to regulate to a science. Moreover airlines do not board enough blankets to accommodate each available seat unless you are traveling international, and even then on those long haul flights you can get chilly sleeping when your body temperature goes down at rest.

Two, Food & Drink. Be prepared for delays. Items such as bottled water (that you buy after security check point) and some sort of non-perishable snack or food is my number two most important on the list. Even though most airlines still offer bottled water for a sale and or free beverages during a flight, the constant delays air-traffic control imposes on airlines due to congestion and bad weather and turbulence can delay the beverage service to passengers for hours. As well, FAA regulation regarding passenger safety does limit the amount of pre-departure service & assistance that flight attendants can offer when the aircraft is on an active taxi way; such as a providing you with a quick glass of water to take medication pre-departure when a normal beverage service is delayed.

Number three is a good book. Again Be prepared for delays. Why? you say I have a laptop. Here is why: you will not always have access to electrical outlet on the plane nor in the airport to charge or re-charge your portable electronic devices such as laptops, dvd players and ipods. Moreover in a delay you will be competing for outlets with other stranded passengers.

Four, A good seat assignment. Get a seat closer to or forward of the wings if you are trying to make a connection to another flight at the flights destination. Delays cause passengers to rightfully panic when worried about connections, which can be especially frustrating if you are on your honeymoon and or heading off to a destination wedding ceremony.

By sitting forward of the wing or better yet if you can afford first or business class, you have a much quicker exit when the plane lands and faster access to either an airline representative and or your gate of departure. Also, even though to sit in the exit row on airplanes you must agree to be able to preform the duties possibly required of you, and the seats do not recline (for safety reasons) these seats offer the most leg room in the main or coach cabin and some exit rows only have 2 seats so you only have to sit next to one other person as opposed to three. This is a better bet for long flights.

Five, on the list is a ball point pen. If you can bring two, even better. I cannot tell you how many people do not carry a pen when traveling and then when the custom forms or entry forms come out for international, or they need to write down gate information etc... they look lost. Passengers sometimes get upset when flight attendants do not lend out their pens and they and panic to ask someone sitting close to lend a pen. In reality those who brought their own pens are now busy using them to fill out there own declaration forms. It can be very frustrating.

On behalf of all flight attendants, I will tell you that as flight attendants we are not being difficult to not lend out our pens. For a flight attendant a ballpoint pen is a FAA required duty item. In fact the main reason we don't lend them out is we are fined by our airline and the FAA if we do not have this required duty item on us at all times.

Sixth and and most important is taking with you a good sense of humor and a ton of patience with a splash of positive thinking. This may sound cliched but it is important and proves practical for a stress free trip. Here is why: expect delays, both during the security period, on the flight and in the air, and be content when they don't occur. Things go wrong, weather changes, air traffic control imposes delays and uncomfortable seats and you may get stuck sitting next to a constant talker or a screaming baby. However, all that said flying is still the fastest safest way to travel. You can also meet and share some incredible experiences with some lovely people you may have never met otherwise.

One last thought; try and remember flight attendants are under extreme pressure from both the airline and passengers. We want to assist all of you and help to make your flight an enjoyable experience. However, we are also working to maintain a safe journey for all of you by meeting FAA safety regulations, dealing with our other crew members, (many that we may just have met when we got on board) and as well meeting the captain and first officer's expectations while enduring the pressure of gate agents for on time departures.

I hope this helped, happy flying! And don't forget to mention to one of your crew members that you are on your way to get married or to honeymoon, it is always a pleasure for crew to help you celebrate anyway we can.

Happy flying! Brett Thompson http://www.do-it-yourself-wedding-make-up.com