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17 things your flight attendant won’t tell you

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I found this article quite interesting and a few things surprising. Enjoy! (www.foxnews.com) さらに...

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andromeda07
On what grounds is it legal to have flight attendants do all the pre-boarding work and not get paid for it?
mhlansdell00
I suspect it has something to do with contract law and the collective bargaining agreement negotiated. You'll find that some labor is exempt from the minimum wage laws too.
QuirkyJules
The same is often true for pilots, though in my experience they do usually get paid for taxiing. They may be "on duty" for up to 16 hours and only get paid for a few hours of flight time.
devsfan
ken young 1
it isn't..Once an employee has "clocked in" or entered the employers property and arrived in their work area, they are to be paid from that time..
I am thinking this particular Flight Attendant may just be embellishing.
PVUpilot
PVUpilot 4
I searched before posting and couldn't find anything, flightaware didn't find any matching links either
dgarwood
You folks really want to here an interesting explanation to why the flight is delayed in taking off?? This is a true-life story, not urban legend, happened to me on a Continental flight from Newark to Sao Paulo. Flight was supposed to leave 11 something pm, I was watching the screen to see the time, and all of a sudden, those dreaded words, "flight delay" and presto, takeoff and therefore boarding time delayed by 30 minutes.....
This happened at least 5 times, and the flight ended up taking off a little less than four hours late. Close to the third hour of delay, with the passengers getting really ticked off with the delay, the folks working at the ticket counter finally said over the loudspeakers that due to "maintenance reasons" the flight was being delayed, to be patient and "bear" with them. They issued coupons to everyone to eat something, boy, were the folks at the food places nearby (NOT) happy!!
Anyway, I was over by the window at one point looking out at the plane for the umpteenth time, and I hear these two guys in maintenance dress talking (in Spanish) about "that lady who had thrown a diaper down the toilet instead of in the trash". Yes, you read correctly,some idiot lady changing her baby threw the diaper down the toilet!! What happened, obviously, the bathroom flooded (one of the ones near the back), and there are sensitive instruments all over the plane, so basically that HAD to be taken care of, and to do that, they literally had to take apart the bathroom floor. It is rather understandable that they can't tell this story to the general public, but now, every time I hear/read that the flight is delayed, I wonder about the bathroom.... :-) Oh, and by the way, I spread the word around about why the plane was delayed, and you can imagine how much more unhappy we all were.
mhlansdell00
A pretty well written article. It put a smile on my face, but makes a point as well. These folks contracted their jobs for a lot of reasons, none of which were to see how much abuse they could absorb from a rude and intolerant flying public. It has always been my hope that if you didn't learn manners growing up, someone would "teach you" as an adult. Maybe it's time we replaced school lessons on condom installation with a few chapters from Emily Post.
sparkie624
sparkie624 3
I think I could see some other things added to the list as well... And as for crew making up reasons to delay... One I have seen is creating a maintenance delay for a BS item because crew member is late. Especially broken seals. Working the line one morning, got a gate call for all 3 emergency kits had broken seals. I had the service check on the night before, all the seals were in good order... What was not in good order is the the FO was not yet on the premises. Fixed the problem and they came up with another problem that was created. Once I signed off the book, I asked the captain if he had another problem while we waited on the First Officer... Got no answer and no more calls. They filed for maintenance delay but was denied.
devsfan
ken young 1
Was about to board a 6am flight out of CLT for ALB....Well %;45 came and went so I sidled up to the kiosk at the gate...I overheard the agent say the flight crew had not shown up for work.
This was a US Airways flight operated by Mesa Air....
I spoke to a pilot friend of mine. He said this happens with some of the lower paying subsidiary carriers. The pilots and FO's find better paying jobs and move on. Not even bothering to give a notice.Not to say that this was the issue.
Anyway, the knowledge I got from the agent allowed me to think quickly and ask about another flight. The agent was a wizard. She got me on a flight that left 6:30 am.
As I left that gate for my new gate, I saw all the others get on a long line to be re-booked WHEW!!!!!
devsfan
ken young 1
that would be 5:45 am
ChayD
The fact that cabin staff don't get paid until wheels up is criminal. Is that the same round the world, or just US domestic?
GuamPilot
That is airline by airline. United F/As are paid 'door closed' time the same as the pilots.
FlightSeer
FlightSeer 2
On the first leg of an ORD > FLL > PAP AA flight, there was a young "gentlemen" (spell that S-P-O-I-L-E-D B-R-A-T) - about 10 y.o.- was seated in the exit row next to his mother. Other members of their family group were also seated in the plane. The FA politely requested that the boy switch seats with another member of the group so that only responsible adults were in the exit row. The boy had the proverbial "hissy fit". "No. I want to sit HERE" was his ongoing- and increasingly noisy- mantra. His mother even sided with him, pleading with the FA to keep him by her. A second FA tried to appeal to the mothers' common sense. No go. After about 10 minutes, the Captain came on the PA citing a slight delay due to a "personnel problem" and that we would be rolling as soon as this was cleared up. The FA called the cockpit (my assumption) and shortly a sizable uniformed gentleman (FO?) appeared to explain to the mom that for security/safety reasons, the boy would have to swap with someone else and could not sit in the exit row. He gently pointed out that the airline did have the right to have the boy removed, if needed, to ensure the safety of the plane. ( People unrelated to the boy even offered their seat just to get the show on the road after what was now a 20-minute delay!!) The grandmother a few rows back had some common sense and eventually prevailed over the doting mother and bossy youngster, and eventually we did take off.

I was very impressed with the calm professionalism of the FA's and cockpit crew members of AA. At no point did they substantially raise their voice, but made their points calmly and gently, yet firmly and repeatedly. I'm sure any of them could add a couple more points to this list about brazen passengers. The crew members received many compliments as we exited after reaching FLL for their handling of the situation.
jbtulsarn
Jill Burns 3
Sounds like a discipline problem and lack of parental control. Why didn't the mother move with the boy? After the first request they should have been shown the door. Ridiculous that the flight has to be delayed because of a bratty undisciplined kid. FA and crew shouldn't have to bend over backwards to appease someone clearly when the exit rows have definite restrictions.
mhlansdell00
I read it as a bratty undiciplined mother.
devsfan
ken young 2
I think things may just get to that point where the carriers will institute a zero tolerance policy for issues such as this.
In other words, very quietly the crew would tell the mother she had 30 seconds to remedy the situation or she'd be escorted off the aircraft.
mhlansdell00
The policy is pretty clear and the regs. are very clear. Only those with the ability to operate the emergency exit hatches are allowed to sit in the seats adjacent to those exits. I think it even printed on the safety card. The flight crews are trained in the way the particular airline wants each situation handled considering all the situations they wabnt considered.
tomtac
tom tac 1
+Mark +ken and +Jill, all good points. What I am thinking is that it would be a good thing if airlines emphasized, as often as possible, "for purposes of safety, when on an aircraft, passengers must obey instructions from the crew. Parents should instruct their children that 'the captain is in charge'."
breezyjr
breezyjr 2
The biggest thing that bugs me, are the folks who REFUSE to check a bag.... So, they have a carryon bag that is way too full, and a backpack. (or HUGE laptop bag, not the normal laptop bags)... then, it takes a FA almost 5 minutes to try to stuff the overstuffed carryon bag in the overhead bin. Or, worse, there isn't a spot in their overhead bin, so FA has to go 10 rows away to find a spot... meanwhile, I just have my backpack, stuffed full, under the seat in front of me... This last flight, I had my laptop, Ipad, nexus 7, pair of flip flops, 6 or 7 magazines, 2 pairs of shorts, about 6 different chargers all stuffed into my backpack, and it still fit under the seat... Why do they have a rule about only ONE carryon, then let people bring a huge dufflebag, plus a "carryon" oh well... I think whoever said it was right... some people lose their minds when entering an aircraft.
ws5r
You hit the nail on the head! In 20 years of regularly flying 3-4 round trips per month, my bag did not meet me at my destination once. I actally caught an earlier flight on a connection so I beat it and the airline we all LUV actually delevered it to me. I hear so many horror stories of lost bags from people and ask them how many times they fly and get a once or twice a year response and they have never lost a bag. If it is ober the size of a briefcase or small laptob sized backpack, I think they should charge for carry ons, but then again I don't pay for checked bags with premier status.
devsfan
ken young 1
generally the rule is one carry on and one personal item.
I've seen people with those PLUS a back pack. That is THREE items.
And instead of putting up with the hassle, the FA's just let it go.
This causes chaos during boarding. The PAX boarding last usually have no place to put their carry on because these inconsiderate dolts have stuffed their coats and other crap into the overhead bins.
The carriers should all have rules that state very clearly overhead bins are for carry on LUGGAGE ONLY..Not your coats. Not your diaper bags. Not your laptops. Not your other crap. It should also state that the overhead bin above your seat is NOT part of your ticket fare. It is not for your exclusive use. You may pay for your "sh....I mean STUFF to be placed below deck in the cargo hold.
RuShoes
Jim Kerr 2
As I've been working with the public for the last 11 years, this article is hysterical!!!
joesultana
great article. same, same. I treat all stewards with absolute respect. it bothers me when I see passengers who do not show courtesy with a simple thank you.
lbflight
I would like to add #18. The Flight Attendant did not tell me...BTW, the man sitting next to you on the flight from London to Phoenix is an international fugitive. One learns this when the US Marshals storm the aircraft, grab and cuff the man sitting next to you and than look at me and ask "We you flying with this person". A very small squeaky voice came out and all it could say "no sir"....

The trade off was he was a very polite fellow to sit next to.
GuamPilot
Number 7. Please don't ask the Flight Attendant to call the cockpit to ask the name of that small island. First, my charts don't have every little rock plotted. Second, even if that small island is outlined on my chart, it won't have a name unless there is an airport which can handle big airplanes. Third, by the time the question gets to me we are past it and I won't know which island you are talking about.
frtraining
Just say: Saint Cripertine
sommers8
Flight attendants operate under the decades old Railway Labor Act. They are not covered by most current work regulations, such as an 8 hour day, breaks, nor do they get paid overtime. It depends upon the individual contract with the airline as to when they get paid. MOST flight attendants do not get paid from the time they report to work at the airport, nor do they get paid for boarding or deplaning. They get paid from the time the door closes and brakes are released to the time that the aircraft is parked at the gate and the brakes are set, aka "flight time."
joholawale
THIS IS INTERESTING
clipperjetl1011
This is so TRUE:)
Useless
The list does not surprise me and with the attitude of some fellow passangers it does not seem unreasonable to "put it up them". I treat to act with air crew as I would like to be treated if the roles were reversed. Shame it cannot be like this through all of life.
jbtulsarn
Jill Burns 1
LOL I love this! Reminds me a lot of the crap nurses go through. Not so much with the patients, but rather the demanding and often annoying family.
devsfan
ken young 1
People can be such jerks. I do not know what happens to some people when they get on an aircraft. It's like they turn into irresponsible children or spoiled brats.
And this goes from the sweaty wife beater wearing redneck who flies once a decade up to the out and back in one day business traveler who has racked up 10 million frequent flyer miles..
I once sat across and one row behind a woman with a toddler. Instead of changing her little darling's diaper in the lav, she decides to use the center seat. She then unceremoniously takes the diaper in her left hand and extends her left arm out into the aisle. Presumably this is a air passenger semaphore code for "hey YOU!!!! Come get this dirty diaper and do it RIGHT NOW!"
After about oh 5 mins or so, she turns on that little light which I guess is supposed to signal the FA...Another couple of minutes goes by( oh, captain had asked flight attendants to be seated for turbulence) and she yells out "Oh Stewardess"!!!! I wanted to slap the taste out of this woman's mouth.
The FA goes to the woman and asks what she wanted. The woman tried to hand the crap bag to the FA. FA retreated to the galley to get latex gloves. Good for her.
pennstate1
Great Article! I am sure there could be 17 more you all could come up with!!!
SWEATINTHSWAMP
I am under the impression all crews are paint once engines start. It is in humane if otherwise
SWEATINTHSWAMP
*paint s/b paid
JCMIA
All coffee is decaf huh? Why not just roofie the passengers? That will ensure they sleep for the entire flight, and maybe for a few hours after it lands. Also, it will prevent idiots from drinking way too much booze on board and then having to be duct taped to their seat :)
MauiIUFan
Well considering the source, fox news, I wont even click it.
devsfan
ken young 2
oh please....Yeah, you don't want to read it because the Flight Attendant is talking about YOU!
WALLACE24
WALLACE24 1

RobSJC
This has previously been posted
HunterTS4
Toby Sharp 2
you mean you have already read this.
n7224e
BC Hadley 0
It does sound familiar.
wnick
nick wolos -2
It's fox. I don't believe anything provided by the fixed noise network!

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