Kartoffelsalat...:-)

Operating my very first flight to Deutschland, proudly I can say that from my discoveries of more than a year of flying my fellow German passport holders :-) are the most pleasant passengers one can have.

Other than not requiring tons of water, pens, goodies in general and in worse case scenario feedback forms before even taking off, these lovely species are seated and secured even way before push back.

Not to mention that all (and I really mean all) hatracks are systematically organized and closed just like by magic hands.

Prior to undertaking the final cabin check a collective clicking takes place (music to my ears...:-) ), which indicates that all seatbelts have been fastened approx 3 seconds after the seatbelt sign comes on, and without even having to ask for anything, all used wet towels have been folded and put aside and our passengers are ready to rock...

During meal service I can't help but notice that these people are very humble (each passenger requires 1 meal the most), polite ("May I have another creamer for my coffee please."), and very appreciative, as "Please" and "Thank you" is the base of their vocabulary which certainly contributed to my flight to be more than a pleasant experience.

I could go on and on about about more observations I have made, but I have to run and secure my cabin, even though I am pretty sure that this has already been taking care of by our wonderful customers...

Both thumps and toes up for sure! ;-)

Jump- Seat Thoughts

As responsible Cabin Crew members we are trained to review the below mentioned sequence whenever we are seated in out allocated seat (jump seat) for the take off and landing of the aircraft.

Usually this is a time frame of approximately between 15 and 45 minutes depending on the factors such as the aircraft traffic etc. This time frame may vary depending on external conditions.

Soooo, we are supposed to review following sequence...

ALERT:

Aircraft type

Location of nearest Jump Seat

Equipment

Responsibilities and Duties

Threats

The above mentioned information should be considered while taking off and landing as these are the “critical phases” of a flight, so we can be fully aware of the actions that need to be taken in case of an emergency, but are we really religiously thinking ALERT thoughts when sitting on our jumpseat?

After catching myself thinking of the laundry I have to do once I am back home and what groceries to purchase, I have decided to speak to my co- workers and I have created an interesting collection of random and not so random thoughts besides being fully ALERT that are on our minds when sitting on a jump seat.

"Life."

“For take off I look at my watch and I calculate the time we are supposed to land.”

“ How do I feel?"

“I cant hear the call bell, no I cant."

“Layover plans, I cant wait to get there.”

“I want to quit my job!”

“Great flight”

“Finalllyyyy!!!”

“I always think of food, aircraft food, food at the layover, food when I am back home.”

“Image of a landmark (Last time it was the Eiffel Tower)

"Wine."

“ Gosh, here i go again.

“I am making conversation with the person sitting next to me, so that time will pass by quicker.”

“Weird person.”

“What to do?"

Also, leisure activities on layovers are discussed, shopping trips are planned and experiences that are mostly not work related are shared.

"Have you heared.... (this usually ends with some sort of gossip story)

Some of crew like to sing...“Yesterday it was a Bruno mars song.”

Whatever it is we are thinking, discussing or feeling when sitting on a jump seat I must admit that we are awesome at multi tasking as besides being totally ALERT we hopefully made you smile reading the thoughts that are wandering through our minds... :-)

In flight call bells...

This is a sound that I am pretty sure we all (cabin crew members) would recognize even while sleeping...A gradual single chime that automatically repeats itself in more frequent intervalls if not resetted is a nightmare, if operated by a customer during a busy time of the flight, such as i.e. the meal delivery, turbulences or descending phase.

A service that has been created purely for the case of an emergency is being used and misused by our wonderful customers. (Unless you would call it an emergency that a mid 30' male customer sitting in seat 72E (1 meter away from the galley, which is the source of whiskey cokes) requieres his 5th drink...:-)

Working for a full service airlines I have realized that this is a significant part of our job though, and observing some of my collegues having tantrums because of this I have realized that there is no point in trying to make our life difficult in avoiding this lovely chime, as it may mean that someone is having a heart attack or in a less dramatic scenario a complaint about a grown up male, weighing 100kg that has fallen asleep on top of both passengers left and right from him, impossible to be woken up...:-)

Welcome...

Based on an invitation by me, recommendation by a friend, general interest in flying as a cabin crew, or just a mistake, no matter what has brought you to my blog, I would hereby like to welcome you.

I have created this blog in order to share experiences of the miscellaneous life of a cabin crew with you.

For all who didn't get the chance to work as a cabin crew before I would like to highlight that this occupation involves a variety of duties and responsibilities (amongst others that of being a guardian, mother, nurse, teacher, psychotherapist and sometimes just a friend or a shoulder to cry on).

The following posts will be a selection of in- flight experiences as well as random thoughts of a woman working for one of the global leading airlines...

After reading this you will eighter apply to work as a cabin crew, be happy that you never applied to work as a cabin crew, you will be able to relate to the mentioned stories, be reliefed that you are not the only one experiencing certain things or name it...

Whatever you may feel, I hope that leastwise it made you smile...