'A responsibility': should airlines introduce women-only sections on flights?

Should Australian airlines introduce women-only sections on flights?

Two months after comedian and television host, Julia Morris, pleaded with airlines to "Please consider a women only section on your planes," Australia's major airlines have no plans to do so.

The I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! Host took to social media to vent her frustration in October 2025 after a man reportedly asked her to "crawl" over him when she needed to get up from her seat - instead of getting up himself to let her out.

"We don't feel safe with men telling us to crawl over them on flights, while they ignore women's personal space," Ms Morris said.

"And I won't even mention the state of the toilets. Not all men but why so many?"

The Facebook post attracted 15,000 reactions and 2700 comments - and the comments are still coming.

One woman said of the man who was sitting next to her on a flight: "He [said he] didn't mind if I fell on his lap. Wouldn't move when I had to get up".

Another commenter said a man "spread across the women either side of him" for "eight hours".

Read more on Explore:

Some women didn't agree: "You paid for a seat just like me and I'm free to book an aisle seat if I prefer," said one.

One man called out "creepy old women".

But the overwhelming response from the commenters was that they agreed - airlines should introduce women-only sections and toilets on flights.

RMIT University associate professor of marketing, Lauren Gurrieri - an expert in gender and consumer culture - said some women experience "unwanted contact, inappropriate behaviours and harassment by other passengers on flights."

These include "inappropriate touching and comments".

"A women's only section could reduce these risks and improve safety and the travel experience for women, especially if they are travelling alone," Dr Gurrieri told Explore.

She said women-only train carriages in Japan and India had "significantly reduced gender-based harassment and violence incidents".

"In-flight assault and harassment continue to be experienced by women and it can be difficult or confronting for women to report incidents in these contexts. As opposed to dealing with the issue after it occurs, a women's only section adopts a preventative approach to the problem," Dr Gurrieri said.

Monash University director XYX Lab - Gender + Place, Professor Nicole Kalms, said airlines have "a responsibility" to help women feel safer on their flights.

"We spend a whole lot of time learning about how to get off a plane during an emergency, be reminded to take off our high heels before going down the inflatable slide ... but there's nothing in any of these briefing or safety documents about keeping your hands to yourself, sexist harassment and other inappropriate behaviour during a flight," Professor Kalms told Explore.

She said on long-haul flights when the lights go down and the staff move behind the curtain, flights are "really vulnerable spaces where the airlines need to take more responsibility and think about how they can communicate what is the expected behaviour".

"They've done that really well with some of their commitments to gender diversity and inclusion, but this is perhaps a missing piece of the puzzle," Professor Kalms said.

Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia have no plans to introduce women-only sections on their flights.

But the airlines say they take reports of sexual harassment seriously.

"Qantas and Jetstar have zero tolerance for sexual harassment or assault. The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is our highest priority," a Qantas Group spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for Virgin Australia said: "Virgin Australia is committed to providing a safe and respectful environment for all guests on board. The safety of our passengers and crew is our highest priority, and any reports of inappropriate behaviour are taken seriously by our crew and acted on promptly."

Both airlines said harassment should be reported immediately to cabin crew.

Or, customers can submit a report via Qantas or Jetstar Customer Care online or by phone, or via the Virgin Australia feedback form.

What do you think? Should airlines consider women-only sections? Leave your comment below or email editor@exploretravel.com.au