Down for ‘raw dogging’? Experts share upsides of forced boredom on flights

Lately, it seems everyone’s got a raw dog in this in-flight fight.
Air travel optimizers have sworn by the latest bizarre trend to penetrate airplane culture — raw dogging — wherein passengers endure a long-haul flight with nothing but their thoughts to keep them occupied. The benefits of forced boredom, however, are still up for debate.
The provocative term has flown off the social media charts this summer as clout-chasing travelers — mostly men — tout having spent half a dozen hours or more in silence on an airplane in a show of physical discipline and mental stamina.
3 Manchester City footballer Erling Haaland recently flexed his “raw dogging” skills. Instagram / Erling Haaland
“Just raw-dogged a 7-hour flight (new personal best),” Wudini, a UK DJ, bragged to his audience in a TikTok post with over 13.2 million views. “No headphones, no movie, no water, nothing.”
“Incredible,” he added. “The power of my mind knows no bounds.”
Seven hours is child’s play to Instagram user Damon Bailey, who shared his personal best,13-and-a-half hours between Shanghai and Dallas, without any form of entertainment.
“It’s quite tough, honestly,” the 34-year-old from Miami, Florida told BBC News — though he has no plans to stop, he added. “I like the challenge, for sure.”
Even bona fide athletes are doing it, including Manchester City soccer star Erling Haaland, who boasted his “easy” seven-hour streak with “no phone, no sleep, no water, no food.”
Proponents of raw dogging have suggested the phenomenon was inspired by Idris Elba’s character, Sam Nelson — who withstands a nearly eight-hour flight from Dubai to London without amenities after crooks commandeer his plane — on the Apple TV+ series “Hijacked.”
Despite Elba’s enviable status as an on-screen hero, critics of raw dogging IRL have shamed the “psychopathic” practice as some experts have warned against the dangers of sleep, food and water deprivation on planes. The dry in-flight environment causes dehydration inside and out, which is why it’s so important to stay hydrated amid air travel, according to travel experts who recently spoke to Daily Mail, adding that there’s also no sense in abstaining from snacks or sleep if your body is telling you it needs those essentials.
3 English DJ Nathan Dawe recently embarked on his first “raw dogged” flight. TikTok / @nathandawe
3 Dawe allowed himself only a flight safety instructions card for entertainment. TikTok / @nathandawe
However, there’s an upside to this ascetic air travel trend — through the lens of mindfulness. Business psychologist Danielle Haig claimed could provide “an opportunity to recharge mentally, gain new perspectives,” she told the BBC.
Haig believes interest in raw dogging suggests “a collective yearning for balance as people seek to reclaim their mental space and foster a deeper connection with their inner selves.”
Relatedly, psychology scholar Sandi Mann, author of “The Science of Boredom,” argues that long stints of silence can be a good thing for those of us who spend our days staring at screens.
“We need to reduce our need for novelty and stimulation and whizzy-whizzy bang-bang dopamine, and just take time out to breathe and stare at the clouds — literally, if you’re on a flight,” Mann told the BBC.
She conceded, however, that overzealous raw-doggers might experience diminishing returns: “This is not ideal for a second-hour flight.”