Chances are, you won’t have any problems with your flight this month. The odds are overwhelmingly in your favor. But just in case…

Here is a list of eight problems you could encounter – and what you can and should do to try and solve these problems.

1. Any Problem

Solution: Document, document, document. No matter what goes wrong, paperwork is your friend: save everything, from your boarding pass to your baggage claim check. Put all airline emails in a folder and save them for a couple of months after your flight.

2. Sitting Next to a Sick Person

Solution: Ask to be moved – though chances are, the plane will be packed and there’s nowhere to go, so – ask for a mask (for you and your sick seatmate). Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, airlines are supposed to ask sick people to use masks, but many don’t stock them. Try covering your nose and mouth with a scarf or coat (don’t use airline blankets unless they are pristine and still in plastic) – and wash your hands often; if using hand sanitizer, make sure it’s at least 50% alcohol. Hey, it’s better than nothing.

Keep reading to learn about bumping, destroyed bags, airlines going bust and more…

3. You are involuntarily bumped

Solution: There’s not much you can you about this, except – make sure you receive your rightful compensation. According to the Dept. of Transportation’s overbooking rules, you could be entitled to receive up to $800 in cash (as opposed to a voucher) – if the airline can’t get you on an alternate flight within a specified time period. Know the rules (and take the cash).

4. Your flight is cancelled

Solution: This is where your back-up plan comes in handy. Don’t have one? Work on that now: it should include pre-programming your airline’s number into your cell, and having a list of other carriers’ flights that will get you to your destination. Once you hear about a cancellation, get to an airline rep ASAP, and, call the airline as you wait in line. Once you make contact, if they say they can’t get you on their next flight, suggest another carrier’s flight – make it easy for them to help you.

5. Stuck at the Airport

Solution: Get to the airline rep as quickly as possible, and ask about hotel vouchers – and ask politely, since chances are the airline is not required to offer any. At the very least, try to score food vouchers. If you are willing to pay for a hotel, call and explain your situation and try to negotiate a lower rate. Also note that some hotel websites will show “no rooms available” but they almost always save some for walk-ins, so call the hotel’s local number.

6. Bag is destroyed

Solution: It’s late, you’re tired and you just want to go home – but do not leave the airport before reporting any problem with your bag. Most carriers give you just 24-hours to report damage, theft or other problems, and you must make the report in person, with the bag. You don’t want to have to go all the way back to the airport the next day, do you?

7. Airline goes under

Solution: It happens, as the passengers of Scotland’s FlyGlobespan found out a week before Christmas. There isn’t a lot you can do except try to contact the airline (and pray you used a credit card to book your flight so there’s a chance of getting some money back). Also, scour the websites of rival carriers – some will work with stranded passengers to fly them back.

8. Pilot seems a little “off”

Solution: The chances of this ever happening are microscopic – but it did happen, earlier this year, aboard an Aeroflot plane – when passengers noted the pilot was slurring his words. Authorities insisted he was fit to fly, but the passengers knew better, and deplaned en masse. If you’re ever in such a situation (and you won’t be), get off the plane.