Dirty sock smell on planes is a more serious problem than you think

Dirty sock smell on planes is a more serious problem than you think View Image

Passengers regularly take their shoes off on flights for comfort and to get into holiday relaxation mode but any smell of sweaty socks in an aircraft cabin may not come from travellers' feet.

Fume incidents on aircraft have become more common in the last few years, according to an investigation by the Wall Street Journal , although they are still rare.

Essentially, a fume event in an aircraft's cabin is when the air inside the plane becomes contaminated, giving rise to a musty odour, like dirty socks, or even sometimes visible smoke.

On The Journal podcast , reporter Benjamin Katz explained what a the dirty sock smell in an aircraft cabin could be when it is not linked to dirty socks.

Firstly, it's