I get asked a lot of questions about airplanes. The one I get asked more than practically any other is: If airlines banned smoking, why do new airplanes still have ashtrays?
You may not have noticed it, but on the wall right next to the lavatory door is a tiny ashtray that pulls out from the wall. Each lav has two, on or next to the inside and outside of the door, despite smoking’s full prohibition on flights in and out of the U.S. since 2000, it is an essential safety feature of every flight.
Because there still needs to be a safe place to put out a lit cigarette.
Dispatches From The Front 