There are few places where social etiquette is tested quite like an aeroplane.

From seat kickers and armrest hogs to passengers who insist on removing their shoes or watching videos without headphones, flying seems to bring out behaviours we’d never typically see anywhere else.

It’s perhaps no surprise then that a new survey by insurance comparison site iSelect has found it’s not flight delays or lost luggage that frustrate Australians most when they travel — it’s other passengers.

According to its survey, more than four in 10 Australians (42 per cent) say having the back of their seat repeatedly kicked is their biggest in-flight irritation, making it the nation’s No.1 plane etiquette bugbear.

Not far behind are passengers who watch videos, play music or make calls without headphones (35 per cent), followed by those who decide the window or armrest is the perfect place to rest their bare feet (34 per cent).

The list doesn’t get much prettier from there. Removing shoes and socks (26 per cent), letting children watch videos without headphones (25 per cent), leaping into the aisle the second the plane hits the runway (24 per cent), and using speakerphone while boarding (22 per cent) all ranked among travellers’ biggest gripes.

Even airport behaviour came under fire, with people who abruptly stop in the middle of busy walkways to check directions (16 per cent) and those who stand stationary on travelators instead of walking (15 per cent) making the top 10.

Pets being allowed in the cabin was another thing that attracted the ire of 15 per cent of survey respondents.

iSelect spokesperson Sophie Ryan says the findings are a timely reminder that a little courtesy can go a long way.

“Aussies love to travel, but it seems what happens once we’re in the air can make or break the experience,” she says.

“It’s a timely reminder that a bit of basic etiquette goes a long way when we’re all sharing a confined space for hours at a time.”

So, as thousands of Aussies head overseas during the European summer, the survey suggests the simplest way to improve the journey isn’t a bigger seat or better meal service . . . it might just be remembering that everyone else is trying to enjoy their holiday, too.