Study Finds Passengers Trust Pilots With Midwestern Accents the Most
Flying on an aircraft means trusting the pilot flying it, and it turns out a pilot's accent can make a difference in how confident a passenger feels during a flight.
A new survey of 4,207 U.S. travelers conducted by Jetcost found that 54% of respondents are more or less confident in their pilot based on the pilot’s accent, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Related: Why You Shouldn't Freak Out If You See Your Pilot Sleeping on a Flight (Video)
When it came to which accents passengers trust the most, it was the Midwest and West Coast that most boosted confidence in the pilot.
Sixty-three percent of respondents said an Upper Midwestern accent made them trust the pilot's abilities, while 58% said the same of a Southern Californian accent.
Accents That Draw the Most Amount of Confidence
Upper Midwestern — 63%
Southern Californian — 58%
Great Lakes — 51%
Central Canadian — 45%
Southwestern U.S. — 37%
The survey also found that some accents can lower a passenger’s confidence in a pilot.
These included a Texan accent, with 65 percent of respondents saying the accent would give them the least amount of confidence.
Accents That Draw the Least Amount of Confidence
Texan — 65%
New York — 59%
General American — 54%
Central Canadian — 45%
Southwestern U.S. — 37%
While this seems to show U.S. passengers prefer a middle-of-the-country or relaxed West Coast accent the most, a 2010 survey in Britain seemed to find the opposite: Sunshine.co.uk found that British passengers felt safest with a male pilot with a “received pronunciation” Oxford accent, the Daily Mail reported.
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