These Ryanair pictograms on the seatbacks confuse passengers

Little pictures, big questions: What do the seatback symbols mean?

Last Wednesday at 08:40 at Gate 12 in Palma I felt like I was in a puzzle room: In the middle of boarding, a woman held her phone up, zoomed in on the seatback in front of her, and loudly asked whether that was a sandwich or a person. Several heads turned. Laughter filled the plane — and a real confusion about the tiny pictograms Ryanair sticks on the seatbacks.

What the drawings are supposed to show – and why hardly anyone recognizes them

The airline largely does away with printed safety cards, saving space and apparently printing costs. Instead, notices are printed directly on the seats. The intention sounds sensible: in an emergency passengers should quickly know what to do (or leave behind). In reality, however, the images are so small and stylized that they offer more puzzles than guidance.

One symbol that resembles a small figure was interpreted by travelers as bread, a toy, or a person. In fact, it is about dentures: In an emergency, prostheses should not be carried along. It is also a clear, though unpleasant image — but only if you know what it is supposed to depict.

More than a joke: jewelry, glasses and teeth

Another symbol shows something some people take for an earring or an accessory. The explanation: All loose items such as jewelry, earrings or large accessories should be left behind when exiting the aircraft. The glasses are usually clearly recognizable — no one really misses those.

What is missing here is contrast, size, and context. Many passengers told me they would have more trust in a clear safety card or in clearly recognizable pictograms. On social media channels, discussions flared up: A YouTuber showed the motifs in close-up and called the designs relics from another decade, reduced in size and impractical.

A compromise between saving and safety?

You can understand that low-cost carriers use every square meter. But if safety instructions are not unambiguous, saving money on the wrong thing. I spoke to a flight attendant at the gate; she shrugged: We explain everything in the safety video, but the symbols on the seats are not self-explanatory.

Conclusion: Small pictograms on seatbacks spark discussion, smiles, and in doubt misunderstandings. If you fly soon from Son Sant Joan to a low-cost aircraft — keep your eyes open, pull out your phone to zoom in, or better: pay attention to the safety video. And yes, go ahead and leave your denture in the seat — in case it is ever needed.