Why i resigned

Hearing: Windchimes.

Since Ms Tigerfeet has been so patient with me, its high time i had a good gripe about my ex-company. Before i get started though i'll just say that this will be a long post so get comfy and know that what i say is my opinion and my views - i'll try to stick to my experiences but just to show that im not exaggerating or maybe it wasn't "just me" i'll throw in a few experiences that happened to my close friends or that i was witness to.


The not so rosy side of things


- a couple of weeks after arriving into the sandpit and starting FA training we were presented with new contracts slightly different to the ones we'd signed before leaving home. The attitude was, if you don't sign well...you can go home. Nice eh? And that wasn't the only time i encountered it. During the annual refresh the class was trying to discuss an issue we faced online but the lady just said, if you don't like it you have tickets and you can go home - she didn't imply it, she outright said it!

- if ever you needed anything from staff travel, HR, housing, or some other department it was the most frustrating experience ever. You couldn't call as no one (aside from the receptionist) would ever pick up. So most likely you had to go in person. Of course this meant forking out cash for the taxis there and back unless you wanted to take the "company transport". They had introduced a bus service there (one way) that they got rid of not long after and just told us to join any crew pick up that only took us halfway and the driver would only let us on if he wasn't full and then you went on a tour of the city before heading towards the office. Oh and you had to see if there was pick up around the time you wanted to go.

when you eventually got to the office, it seemed like no one had ever heard the phrase "can i help you?" and if you didn't know your way around there were no signs to tell you where to go. If you needed a signature, good luck with finding that person, they could be at a different location, out and no one knows where they are or when they'll be back.

- there is a culture of negative reporting among management and no positive feedback. You could get reported for almost anything and get called into office for it (at your own expense of course), if you tried to explain, it just went through one ear and out the other even if it was legitimate. On the other hand if you got good feedback from a passenger or cabin manager, you didn't hear a single thing from management, no note, no nothing.

- there are laws saying that unions or pretty much any organized representation is illegal. You have no voice, no real way of finding a resolution to your problem unless someone in management decides to give you a break. One of my friends found out his dad was seriously ill due to cancer and wanted to fly home. He tried to reach someone in management but had no luck and when he did get a hold of someone they said "no, we're short of crew". My friend was really upset and kept trying to reach someone (higher up) in management who said it would be alright. But it didn't end there, he got told off (by the person who said no) for going over her head!

- in our contract we are allowed 1 fully paid annual leave ticket to your home city. The catch you have to get it signed by the crewing control manager as witness to you actually having annual leave. So lets just say you wanted to use your ticket on a couple of days off you would have to jump through hoops before anyone would understand and realize that its not a big deal. If staff travel can't find a seat (which actually translates to ticket price suitable) they would tell you to travel a different day - HUH? Aside from you making plans - changing leave isnt easy.

- other crew. Before anyone bites my head off for this let me say that the crew by nature tend to be nice but in the company's eagerness to recruit people they are selecting those whose a) spoken English is not good enough, and b) don't stand up for themselves or say anything if somethings wrong. Why on earth does this matter? Well what happens if heaven forbid theres an emergency?

- i guess another thing is the hypocrisy of how it all works and how the majority of people aren't qualified to hold the position they're in.

- they promise so much but hardly deliver on anything.

- they are concentrating on adding destinations but not on making things run smoothly

- in about a week you can get over 20 updates/changes/reminders/notices in regards to service, safety, security etc. Some necessary, most of it is just changed back again next week...

- they recently introduced allowances...which is well and good but it would be better if you had it in cash at the hotel like other airlines instead of your pay at the end of the FOLLOWING month. What good is it to crew who get pulled off standby with no time to change money? At least its good for the company as they don't lose money on exchange rates...

- not getting the full use out of the free tickets and discounts because you hardly get granted more than 3 days off in a row!

- rosterings a bitch. You only get ONE request per month! Just ONE! Most airlines have more or at least some bidding system. So you either request a flight OR 4 days off in a row OR a friend to fly with. Good luck getting that ONE request though. Before resigning all crew got denied requests for 4days off in a row for 3 months.

And in fairness i should put down what is good.

- free shared accommodation. You'll be lucky if you get to pick who you want to live with. Oh and you cant have a person of the opposite sex over past 1am.

- free laundry for your uniform.

- free pick up and drop off for work, just keep in mind there are other people in other buildings too so that does take time.

- discounted tickets and discounts with some hotels and hire car agencies.

- flying to great destinations (though layovers tend to be 24hrs only now)

- staying in some really swish hotels (and some crummy ones and ones too far away from the city)

- CREW!!!! You'll make some fantastic friends and have loads of fun.

- tax free salary


So anyways those are the main things. If i've forgotten anything else i'll add it later. I left because after 2 years i couldn't take it anymore, i was tired of being lied to, treated like crap, and have to fight over the smallest thing. The layovers were not worth it and neither was the pay. I don't regret the experience - i learnt a lot about human nature and i'm lucky to fulfill a dream of mine plus i have made wonderful friends who i'll probably have for a very long time. But it was definitely time to move on to better things.

VP

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Last layover and flight

Hearing: CNN news

I was called off standby to do this Paris layover and so my Cochin turnaround was cancelled. The new hotel here is worse than the old one which i didnt think was possible. I mean its nice and clean but theres no tea/coffee facilities in your room (only in the crew lounge where i am now) and no free breakfast like our previous hotel. Also its in the middle of nowhere, the last one was near a village which you could at least take a walk in but this one is just surrounded by airport and if you want to do anything you have to take a shuttle to the airport...drab. Hmmm didnt mean to start out with that.

Ok so anyways, its my last flight and ive been taking photos with a friend of mine who also got pulled from standby onboard. Ive been noting every "last" and each time getting a mix of relief and sadness. I still believe im doing the right thing though. BTW i asked my company for a reference letter and the answer i got was "we dont give reference letters just employment letters" and then when i asked for that they said "you can get it from HR when you leave." Gee how nice, wonder what they would have said if i hadnt resigned yet.

So after i arrive back from this layover i have to return all "company property" and get signatures etc before handing over my ID/license/passport etc to HR. They are meant to give me my final payment for last month, this month and 2mths basic pay for the 2 yrs ive been with them. I expect to be screwed around till the last possible minute before i get my due pay as they did the same to a friend of mine - gave him a cheque at the airport!!! What use is that?? But i'll keep my fingers crossed that i get it sooner as im flat broke at the moment since ive paid off my credit cards. Also i'll probably have to double check that they have processed my repatriation ticket...

Off to try and get some food.
VP

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Resignation Proceedures

I have just returned from a trip to the office. I just went in to find out what i needed to do before leaving and ended up doing my exit interview where, and trust me when i say this, i didnt hold back from saying anything. It was another relief to put one more step behind me. After my final day of flying, i am to return some company stuff, uniform/manuals/etc, get signatures and then hand in my passport, ID etc to finalise any paperwork. I already know the date I'm supposed to leave and that makes me feel great.

The time I've left now means packing and finalising all my stuff here (thankfully i get an extra 40kg to ship stuff home), seeing my friends and enjoying the time i have with them. Anyways, i should go, Oli is dropping by and we have loads to catch up on.

VP

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Eww Gross...

What do you do when the galley drain starts overflowing and builds up such momentum that the liquid runs down the aisle past pax and 11 rows of seats??? Laugh of course!!! Who do you blame it on? The guy who jinxed it. The silver lining? Its top-of-descent.

For no reason at all a drain in my galley got sick and decided to throw up loads of water which thankfully was clear though not clean. Even closing the water shut-off valve didnt help. When it did ease and stop i went to get some used blankets to soak up the water during landing. Unfortunately a few minutes later there was a stream running down the right-hand side of the cabin past weary business class onlookers.

I must have piled loads of blankets into that galley just to stop anymore from going down the aisle. A potential safety hazard but a water logged floor in an emergency isnt better. But we had to laugh, the look of the pax faces and the sheer "what tha?" of the situation not to mention it was just before landing so we didnt have to deal with it very long made the situation more funny than it would have been otherwise. The guys down the back earlier had found that the sinks in the toilets were regurgitating brown liquid and so much so that it too, was leaking out into the cabin.

Who do we blame for this?? The crew who jinxed the whole thing. He was just saying how on a previous flight this had happened and thankfully it hadnt on this flight (yeah right) and moments later - the drains protested.

Other than that, my first and last Johannesburg flight went without a hitch. I had really nice crew and a lovely Aussie CM (who looks a bit like Hilary Duff i think, though others may and probably will disagree) and an easy going flight deck. The layover was nice, we went for a steak dinner the first night (YUM!) and the next day 4 of us went on a tour to the Lion Park (cute cubs galore!) Photos to come later. For now i should get some brekkie.

VP

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Bring a book and an ipod

Hearing:

Every trip into staff travel sends the most sturdy employee running. It usually involves a long wait where you cant tell which person is processing which type of ticket - ID, duty travel, annual leave, repatriation etc - nor who is in line next, not to mention that when you manage to get to someone they tell you oh no you have to see so and so or they tap away at their computer not really telling you much about what they are doing. If you had the sense to apply online a week, 2 weeks or even a month ago you can safely bet your tickets still wont be ready. So naturally it can be a frustrating and lengthy process which, no joke, can actually take hours out of your day. And that's where i was today. Now over 2 years i have avoided the place if at all possible usually getting my tickets at a company office in the city or directly from the office at the airport but when i need a ticket for someone other than myself it cant be avoided and so my strategy is to take a book and my ipod to help with the long wait. Thats how i managed to get the tickets today with minimal frustration and am now back home with a relaxing cup of coffee contemplating my holiday.

I should probably explain a few things i mentioned 3 posts ago. I am now officially on my annual leave and its to last till the 23rd of this month. Ive been planning on taking my mum to Paris (what mum wouldn't want to go) and to visit Cairo since its one place I've said i wanted to go to a thousand times but nothings worked out. So that at least explains why i was in staff travel today.

The other thing that ties in with my annual leave is that i will be getting another visitor. My uncles wife and her daughter. My uncles wife is very eager to come visit and see where I've been living and (i daresay) just as interested in shopping. As for me I'm more excited to see my cousin who my uncle named after me! I haven't seen her for over 7 years and she has really grown from all the photos I've seen, i cant wait to get to know her.

The other bit of news is that i had a performance check done on me on my JFK. The very same that i did while my brother was here. I had no idea it was being done, in fact, i didn't find out till i was seated in my jumpseat for landing and the CM turns to me and says, i should tell you I've been doing a check on you! Furthermore she said she had nothing negative to say, that i worked very hard and she was impressed and wondered if i was interested in her recommending me for a CM position! I was so surprised but very relieved that at least id gotten a good report.

Anyway mum and i are heading off to Paris tomorrow and we'll be there till the 7th. I cant wait to see the expression on her face when she sees the sites. Better go pack.

VP

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A yearly thing

Hearing: Chatter from classroom next door.

I have just returned from a quick aircraft visit (B777-300). The rest of the class are in the cafeteria getting something cold to drink and I'm up here cooling off in front of the air conditioner. Summer is truly underway with temperatures continuing to climb into the mid 40s in August. The aircraft we visited was undergoing some general maintenance and unfortunately there was no ground supply or APU (Auxilary Power Unit) aircon and everyone melted within seconds of the stifling heat inside. Still theres something about being able to walk upto an aircraft on ground and being inside without the whole customer service perspective that is so wholly raw aviation and i will never get tired of it, same as i will never get tired of watching or being in take-offs and landings.

On the way there i gave A- a quick call to see how he was doing. His latest news is that he has been accepted to fly with VirginBlue back home. He will be based in Melbourne and so has to move there from Perth and i imagine the arrangements are keeping him busy. Congrats A, DJ is lucky to have you.

Well the class is slowly trickling back in and i have 2 hrs of Crew Resource Management to sit through not to mention another 2 days still to come, tomorrow Safety and Emergency and the last day First Aid. Anyways better go,

VP

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Busy, busy, busy.

Hearing:

Ive been so busy since my last post. There is so much to tell. Brothers visit, mums visit, jetskiing, Bar/Club hopping, angry motorists, Amman, annual leave, Cairo and Paris, another visit, training, spot performance assessment....but i have to go study now, got the yearly refresher training tomorrow, will update when i can.

VP

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Jetlagged

Hearing:

Ive been waking up at 8am for the past 2 days now. Its kinda annoying cuz i get sleepy way too early too and kinda good cuz i get a lot of stuff done. The flight home was ok - our CM was a bit skitzo on the way back, he kept on at us for every little detail, i think he was probably just tired as he mellowed out a little after he got some sleep onboard.

Checking out Trays comment in my last entry reminded me of a few more things to add to Flying 101, hers being a big one. The last thing FAs want to do is wake you up to put your seatbelt on. Its really simple, the seatbelts can be extended and you can still sleep comfortably with them on - trust me I've done it. The other thing i hate to mention, especially when it applies to business and sometimes first class pax is this. Don't touch the bread! Allow me to explain. When we do a meal service, very often we provide a variety of bread for pax to choose from and it is usually presented in a bread basket. You point, we use a tong and put it on your bread plate. Simple. But i have lost count of the times pax touch the bread. Its gross guys, even if its the bread your taking, the person next to you will still be grossed out, just don't do it.

Catering is a big issue onboard. Cabin crew are not responsible for how many chicken, beef, or fish meals we get so when we say sorry is Veg or some other meal ok, don't throw a tantrum, really there is nothing we can do. Catering give us a certain number of each choice depending on how many pax we have and its not always possible to give you your option - this applies to all classes. I can only suggest you check in early and get the seats at the front of the cabin as usually the service starts there.

One thing that makes me love some pax is when they get out of their seat and come to the galley either to throw something out, return a coffee cup, or ask for something. Its really nice especially on long flights. It gives them a chance to stretch their legs and gives us a chance to sit down and not trip over feet in the dark. Sometimes if we're busy we might just ask what seat your in and say we'll bring whatever it is you want to you, but either way you've saved us half the trip and made our job that little bit easier.

Right so I'm off to make lunch, its a bit early but i can watch The O.C. while its simmering on the stove and it should be nice and hot by the time I'm hungry. Ciao.

VP

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Flying rules and flying home

Hearing: traffic

After doing two long turnarounds i realised i hadn't been adding to my Flying 101 rules. What brought this lovely post back to mind? Well, i yet again saw a pax go into the lav without shoes. I have been a FA in all classes, First, Business and Economy and it continues to baffle me why people don't wear shoes into the lavs.

On one flight a colleague of mine couldn't resist asking a business class pax why they were going barefoot, his reply, it keeps his feet cool...well that's all well and good but seriously...gross!!! Dude its filthy in there! Yes the cleaners clean it, we clean it too but its not going to be like home and you cant trust the pax who used it before you. Ive seen how gross they can get and trust me i will never even go in there with socks let alone barefoot.

The other thing i have to mention is for people with aisle seats to be careful of their heads, elbows, knees and feet. I know the seats are cramped and its so easy to stretch out into the aisle but just so you have been warned, you will end up with a bruise somewhere. We try very had to maneuver our carts so we don't hit anyone but the carts are heavy and sometimes we do have accidents. When the cabin is dark its even worse, we can barely see where we're going and tripping over your feet isn't fun for us nor you.

Right so those two rules off my mind now i can say this....I'm flying home tomorrow!!!! I'm operating my first flight into Sydney and I'm so excited. I cant wait to be paid to go home LOL!!! I was also just thinking about how weird it will be to be arriving at Sydney Airport as crew and going through immigration, customs and walking out those doors in arrivals as crew and in uniform...Bizarre. Ive only ever gone through as a pax and only ever watched other airline crew come through. Before i was crew i used to wonder what it would be like and i guess now will be my opportunity to walk in their footsteps and experience the whole thing myself. Should be interesting.

VP

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New York! New York!

Hearing: Hum of PC

Guido i know you'll want to kill me over this.

In a very flaky move by me, i stupidly (i cant say that word often enough), forgot to pack pants.......yeah i know, how on earth can i forget that right? Ive been asking myself the same question since i got into the hotel and opened my suitcase...and i still don't have an answer. I packed everything else - beanie, scarf, gloves, coat, jumper, 2 woolly tops expecting it to be cold (which it is - it snowed a little last night) and determined to go out with my 2 friends and batch mates. Oh in case your wondering i've already asked 4 girls on the flight if they have a spare pair and if they did well i wouldn't be here would i? Ugh, very stupid.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry, i swear. I was really looking forward to going out to Manhattan and taking in the sights even if it is a short layover but now...

I do have another trip at the end of next month but i dont know anyone on that flight and going out alone isnt the same as going out with friends. Did i mention what a stupid move this was?

A very frustrated and annoyed,
VP

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Where can i let my salt water out?

Hearing: Micheal Buble

I just got back from a DAM flight and though I'm very sleepy i just had to hop onto blogger and share this little tidbit. Even though i was working down the front, for take off and landing my jump seat was down the back which was cool cuz i got to chat with some of the other girls. As we landed back home one of the girls told me of a new way one of the pax had asked to use the toilet...one guess how. LOL!!! I couldn't stop laughing! She thought he might be asking for the loo but when she asked do want the toilet he said no i want to let my salt water out! Now that's what i call original!!!

VP

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Cairo collapse.

Hearing: Elissa - Law Ta3refo (Arabic - my cousins suggestion)

Yesterday i was called off my standby for a CAI flight. Turns out i was the only Arabic speaker (way to go CC) but it was ok. I was Business galley and it was a smooth flight till we hit a medical situation. On the way back we had just finished with the service and i was making a pax a cup of coffee when one of the girls looking all flustered came up to me. "You the Arabic speaker?" I had barely said yes before she had grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the galley through the cabin and into economy...

There I saw a guy collapsed in the isle and our CM lifting his legs and calling out to him to see if he could respond. Luckily there was another guy on our crew, with his help the CM dragged the poor man into the galley. Also as luck would have it one of the girls was a trained nurse so she handled most of it but i was there since there was a strong chance the guy couldn't speak English (and he couldn't). I'm sure every airline has this, we contacted a medical center via satellite phone to get permission for hypo stop gel. As it turns out the man had diabetes and his sugar level had dropped. It wasn't a serious form as he didn't use insulin and he refused the hypo stop gel, instead we gave him just some sugar dissolved in water once he regained consciousness after putting him oxygen.

I admit that initially i was worried especially since he wasn't responding but as he was breathing and i could see his eyes flicker under his lids i knew he was just unconscious. Once he started to slowly come out of it and was able to talk a little i was able to explain what happened, ask a few questions, tell him what we were doing etc. He didn't seem surprised at what had happened (apparently its happened a few times before) though he did seem relieved that there was someone who he could communicate with. Slowly he got better and i kept talking to him asking how he was feeling, making jokes and such and then we sat him in business for landing since the airport doc's had already been alerted to what happened and would be waiting for us. He was fine but the docs had to check him anyway. Really a nice guy, good humored too and thankfully it turned out ok and wasn't as bad as it could have been.

One gripe i really have to air is the total lack of consideration shown by the rest of the pax. Though the rest of the crew continued with the normal service i had some really inconsiderate B**tard tell me to take their trays as they guy was being dragged past them. Another kept sticking his head into the galley asking for coffee when he could clearly see the man on the floor with us occupied with doing what we could for him! What was he thinking????!!! Honestly people, do i have to say it? When there is a medical situation, cut the crew a break! Be patient, yes we still try our best to complete a service but believe it or not, it is not our priority, saving a life is, so just get real and don't be so stupid! Sad to say but this is also going under flying 101. Ugh! *eye roll*

Anyway, kudos to the CM, Captain who was just as supportive and helpful and nurse. They were great, and kudos to me too, just coz i can! LOL.

VP

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I can be just as sneaky.

Crew control, give it a rest.

I was woken up early by a call from them but i have learnt my lesson, never answer unless you want to. Last time i picked up they put me on a 9day trip! Today i have a short turnaround and the last thing i want is for them to change it - esp since my cousin is here. And guess what they want to do? Put me on a 3 day trip. HA! How do i know? I signed into my friends account and went through the different flights till i found my name on the crew list.

Bugger off CC, they have called me no less than 5 times since 8.30 am this morning! Im not doing them any favours coz i know they wont do me any. Ugh!

That aside, since i was so rudely woken up i checked out Trays site and did the "What airline are you?" quiz. Since it had such a cool result i decided to post it. Apparently im a Seychelles!! Hee hee, me like very much.

VP

What Airline Are You?

You are Air Seychelles. You are laid back and relaxing. An easy-going person like you knows how to kick back. You could live your life island hopping, taking in local cultures and pursuing exciting water sports. Eat it up, but be careful, you might get sunburned one of these days.
Take this quiz!







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EDIT 10.56am: But CC can be sneakier!!!

Bugger! and double BUGGER!!! Guess what they did? They called my flatmate! She was on standby this morning and they called her in for my flight and then asked her if she was my flatmate and if they could please talk to me since they had been having no luck reaching me - those sneaky little bastards!............ So looks like im on that BKK flight after all and there is one girl on it who i really dont want to fly with too.

Freaking little rats. I hate CC.

VP

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Seeing double.

Hearing: Traffic.

Happy Eid everyone!!

So I'm just here, in bed, tossing up between watching a movie before going to bed or getting an 'early' (its 10.20pm) night since i have a flight tomorrow. I will be going to Khartoum, which unfortunately is a turnaround meaning its going to be a very long day and i wont land till 11.30pm and then wont get home till well after midnight *sigh*. And do you want to know what i have on the 1st? Khartoum again!! Everyone who i tell this laughs and says exactly the same thing "who did you piss off at crew control??" and the truth is no one! I haven't called in sick, haven't hassled them for swaps or anything! Dem's the breaks i guess and i just gotta deal with it.

So everyone, party up for me too for New Years tomorrow - may 2007 bring you health, success, happiness, and love - Have a brilliant New Year!

VP

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Flying 101

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to VPs flying 101. If you are sitting at the back please leave the spitballs till after class and pay close attention. We will be covering safety, security, patience, politeness and above all common sense and courtesy. And I'm not just talking to you passengers today, some of you crew can also learn a thing or two. Oh and if you don't like it you don't have to be here, kapeesh?

(These are my own rules from my experiences onboard with crew and passengers, each one is based on an experience and will have the supporting post linked to it. Please don't copy without permission - linking is welcome, VP.)


Welcome to Flying 101


26 dec 06

1- DON'T just sit wherever you like, ask the crew first.

2- DO sit where your boarding card says your seat is especially if its a short or full flight, if your travelling with your family but are sitting separately just deal with it.

3- DON'T check in late and then complain that your family isn't sitting together.

21 jan 07

4- DON'T be impatient and inconsiderate if there is a medical situation you can see the crew are dealing with. They will get to your tea/coffee whatever when they can, a persons life has a higher priority.

5- DO tell crew if you have a medical problem or if during the flight you start to feel sick. Trust me we want to know and prevention is waaaay better than having you collapse or become seriously ill.

19 apr 07

6- DO wear shoes whenever you use the lavatory. They are not clean even if they look it.

7- DO try as much as possible to stay within your seat and not to stretch out into the aisle unless your ready for a few bumps and bruises.

26 apr 07

8- DO keep your seatbelts fastened loosly, make sure we can see them, put them over your blanket. We dont like waking you when we're going through turbulance to make sure you have them on.

9- DONT touch the bread. Its gross. (First and Business class specific)

10- DONT complain that you didnt get your meal. Catering only gives us a set amount. Check in early and sit at the front or, when you book specify a meal.

11- DO get out of your seat to go to the galley (not during a service though!) if you want something.

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Why boarding takes longer than the flying time...

Hearing: Hanging by a moment - Lifehouse

Ive decided to start a list of Flying Tips for passengers. A sort of what not to do when you get onboard and what you should do. I'll keep adding as i come across them while flying and post updates when i add to this list.

Last night i had a short turnaround. On the return sector the flight time was 40mins and it was full. One father was separated from his family and asked if he could sit next to them, i told him the flight was full but would see once everyone was onboard if i could swap him. But he asked me again even though he could see we were still boarding, and i gave him a "be patient" reply. Now everyone seated next to his wife was travelling together and they weren't likely to split (why should they?) so i went back and apologised - but come on, its only 40mins! We'll barely take off before we start landing again.

There was a bunch of individuals who also seemed to want to sit wherever they liked which didn't help since we had to go up and ask where they were really sitting ask them to move thereby slowing the process of boarding and of course taking off later. And in case your wondering why we don't just seat the other person where your seat is, its because if we had to do that to everyone it would take forever. One couple did just that, took seats that weren't theirs and kept having to move, in the end i told them off in front of everyone explaining that it delayed boarding was inconsiderate and unfair and they should not do it without asking the crew. If the flight isn't full thats a different story but even then you need to wait till boarding is done.

The thing is if you have a particular seat you want or you want to sit with your family - check in early. The "i told the check in staff i wanted __ but they didn't give it to me", or "they said i could change on board" excuses don't work. Ive seen it a hundred times. A family checks in late and are given separate seats, they board late and then argue with crew and the cabin manager wanting to sit together disrupting other passengers and again delaying the flight.

So with that in mind the first VP rules of flying are now online.

VP

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How embarrassing...

Hearing: Butterfly - Crazytown

On a recent Paris layover I had the lovely opportunity of embarrassing myself by gracefully falling hard on my butt! And what brought about this lovely display of clumsiness? I was being chased by a madman, aka, my CM. Could I help it if I found it hilarious that he stepped in doggy doo? Besides I wasn't the only one laughing and he as such a stick up his butt about being perfect that it just added to a lovely moment... :)
So as I was running for my life an ingenious idea popped into my head that if I just stepped to the side at one stage he would just shoot past me, which he did, but I didn't see the half exposed drain, tripped and, in true VP "unco-ness", landed painfully on my butt!! Oh the shame...hahaha, nah it was all good, I got helped up and could never live that moment down for the rest of the trip but it was funny and I did laugh at myself too.

On another note flying back we were crossing a thunderstorm below us and I managed to get a few photos. They aren't that good since I only had a small window and lightning is wicked fast (duh!) But still I think they are quite rare, I've cropped them to show mainly the lightning through the clouds rather than vast amounts of black space (I couldn't use zoom not knowing where it was going to hit next).






















Always
VP

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Bumps and bruises

Hearing:

Let me just say that fasting and flying do not go together - well not if your operating, if your a pax then YAY! Less work for us, cruel but true. We dont think 'hey, good for you' when you tell us your fasting, we think 'sweet, that's one I don't have to worry about till Iftar', or is that just the ramblings of a jaded FA?

And I am seriously jaded nowadays, I used to love the whole thing but now urgh! I mean one day I was operating economy and it was one of those flights where you know your going to be on your feet the whole time so from boarding the minute the call bell went off I went and spoke to that person - politely - and explained that the button was easy to press accidentally and could they be careful, but when I saw a kid sitting there and just hammering away at any button he could I smiled at the mum who couldn't care less and said hope you don't mind but... and took the handset out of the cradle and dropped it between the seats! I told her he could use the touch screen to watch videos and whatnot and if they needed anything she could use her call bell.

And those call bells can be annoying, they are not meant for service believe it or not, they are meant for medical problems if you need attention and cant move. But people use them for service which is fine, but I hate it when kids play with them, and it gets annoying to the other pax as well when they are trying to sleep and all they can hear is call bells going off. And just before you think I'm sooo bad I do have times where I love service, it depends on the people of course but its simple, a thankyou and a please from them will go a long way with me and if they smile they've made my day. Basic treat others how you'd like to be treated. Is that asking too much?

But I digressed...I meant to write about my LHR flight yesterday how I shouldn't fast on longhaul because it makes my brain foggy and how I kept getting all these bumps and bruises but now I cant be bothered - and yes in case your wondering I am fasting again today.

Enjoy your food and drink you lucky people...

A thirsty,
VP

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A close call...

Hearing: Ironic - Alanis

Ramadan Kareem everyone!

Yesterday I had a night flight to Bombay. Everything started out ok same as usual. We had just finished the service upfront when the Captain calls and tells us basically we are to turn around and go back to base because there is a problem with the hydraulics - a leak or something. I ran down the back and started helping with the clearance and putting everything away. I was yet again amazed at some of the pax today. Even after the Captain made a PA saying we were going back due to technical difficulty and we would be on ground very soon they kept asking for all sorts of stuff!! I mean hello?? You think the Captain would turn around if it wasn't something serious?

Anyway, once everything was secure the CM called everyone and told them again what was happening, what to expect (a strong possibility of landing gear catching fire and ground evacuation - GULP!), how much time was left, a few words of encouragement and then we had nothing to do but wait. Personally I wasn't upset, yes it was nerveracking but that's normal and anyone who says different is lying through their teeth. So I sat strapped in tight in my jumpseat waiting for the landing and going through different scenarios in my head.

Thank GOD! Everything worked out ok, but of course you knew that otherwise I wouldn't be typing up this post. The landing was surprisingly smooth though understandably we took longer on the runway to slowdown than usual. Thankfully there was no fire, no need for evacuation and it was ok - massive sigh of relief! We disembarked the pax and to top it off we had one lady sprain her ankle as she was stepping onto the stairs, luckily she wasn't carrying her baby at the time, and we got a wheelchair for her.

On the brightside we got to go home 'early' *grin*

VP

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Early Morning London

Hearing: birds chirping outside

Ive woken up really early this morning to sweet sweet rain!!! Its so nice. The sky is dark outside and theres this quiet coolness. I had to open up my balcony door and just breathe in the fresh air, its such a nice change from hot sticky weather and continuous heat.

Yesterdays flight was a nice one. I was working in business and we were full but the pax were nice. I had these two mates who were constantly teasing each other. One insisted the other was an alcoholic while he downed a bottle of red wine himself and the other insisted he wasnt while drinking a bottle of champagne! LOL! The flight had a very light load otherwise and crew kept going to other areas to chat and stay awake.

Unfortunately all my good work was undone after we landed. The ground staff at heathrow didnt realise which aircraft we were in (???) and didnt pull us in enough so the tail of the aircraft was stickingout into the taxiway!! Oooh the pax werent happy. We had to wait an hour before we were moved. And to make things worse everytime the captain made a PA he couldnt be heard. At one point i went upto the flightdeck to see what was going on myself and then instead of explaining individually to each pax stood upfront and told everyone what i knew. I couldnt make a PA since my CM had dibs on that and was feeling very territorial so i did what i could, i think the pax appreciated the gesture and were less willing to kill me as much as the other crew after that!!! LOL!

Still a bit sleepy so might crawl back into bed before wake up in 4 hours. Will leave the balcony door open though *grin*.

VP

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