I have left many things behind everywhere; indeed, pieces of me are strewn all over the globe wherever my footsteps have taken me and where my memory has failed.

The one incident that sticks with me is when I left my coat on my seat on a flight from London. I only realized it after I had left Changi airport and was in a taxi home.

I called SATS, told them about it, and they said, yes, we collected it for you and why don't you return to the airport and we'll have someone waiting for you to deliver it – and lo and behold, soon as I arrived, my coat was ready for me.

A coat though is a pretty innocuous item to be left behind on planes apparently. According to my favourite travel poller, Skyscanner – there is a reason they have scanner in their name, they scan everything not only the best air fares – a live parrot, a glass eye and a bag of sand are just a few of the bizarre items left behind on planes each year.

So according to this survey of 700 international cabin crew, extensive list of items have been found on flights after passengers have disembarked.

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