An airport worker who shared images of tape that “holds planes together” on TikTok has caused alarm among flyers.
The airport ground agent, TikTok user “11:11”, posted several photos and videos of planes with their wings, engines, and other body parts taped-up.
Although tape is commonly used to cover cracks on planes, many flyers were seemingly unaware of the practice.
“I’m literally waiting to get on my flight right now, don’t do this to me,” one commentor wrote in alarm.
“Me intensely staring at the piece of duct tape holding the wing together the entire flight to be certain it stays on,” another commented.
One TikTok user wrote: “Planes are statistically safer than driving. But I still hate it lol”.
The post, which was titled “Any other rampers notice this all the time,” included seven examples of planes with tape on their wings, engines and bodies.
The airport ramper wrote in an overlay caption on the TikTok: “[When] you start to notice all the tape and flex seal that holds planes together”.
Many TikTok users said airplanes are taped with a high performance aluminium tape called “speed tape”, which is used to fix minor cracks. It is not the same as duct tape.
“Calling it tape and flex seal is so misleading I love it,” a viewer of the now-viral TikTok video wrote, causing the airport ground agent to reply: “Shhh, they’ll never know”.
The video has been viewed more than 1.6 million times.
