Posted below verbatim is correspondence that was forwarded to Flights From Hell.
Here is a letter I wrote to British Airways complaining about their boorish flight crews!
Dear Sir,
As a frequent BA flyer (Gold Card # ______), I have finally gotten to the point of writing a letter to say how sick to death I am about the obnoxious, boorish behavior of your flight crews when they are on the ground. They congregate in great herds, engaging in loud, obtrusive behaviour as though they own the world and everything in it. Last week was the last straw.
On Tuesday, November 17th, I was enjoying a quiet business dinner at the Mambo Point Restaurant in Kampala, when 8 BA crew came and sat at the adjacent table – 5 females and 3 males. No one objects to high spirits over dinner, but this was way over the top. The loud talking and laughing wasn’t so bad, but when the “BA Spice Girls” started singing, it was just too much. Loudly, and not even in harmony. Other diners were looking on, just as annoyed as I was. They all knew it was BA crew. I asked the restaurant owner if she could discreetly request this mob to keep the noise down. She apologised but said she could not, as they would get up and leave. She obviously had had experience of BA crews before.
When I was leaving I could not resist a parting shot. Speaking to the eldest male of the bunch, clearly the Captain, I quietly let him know that their behaviour was offensive to other diners and was not doing BA’s image any good. Who told me to open my mouth? The “Spice Girls” then rounded on me, loudly castigating me for having the temerity criticise their behaviour. I fled, before things got out of hand.
I write to you because this is not an isolated incident. Once I had to call the front desk at 2:00am on a Wednedsay to get the BA crew in the room next to me to keep the noise down. It is exactly the same elsewhere; BA crews have the reputation for loud, loutish behavior. Do they behave in England like this, or is this kind of behaviour only for export? Judging by the amount of alcohol these people consume, you’re paying them too much overseas allowance!
Fed up,
Cc: Sir Robert Ayling
Chairman & CEO
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Flight Attendant’s Top 5 Annoyances
September 3, 2011
in Flying Hell Commentary
My Top 5 Annoyances as a Flight Attendant…
Firstly, I want to say that I love being a FA (flight attendant for short) and that if you happen to be a passenger on one of my flights, more often than not you are going to have a nice flight. That being said, I would like to list my top 5 (and I’m sure most FA’s) pet peeves when it comes to dealing with passengers.
1. THE FASTEN SEATBELT SIGN IS ON! After takeoff at roughly 10,000 feet the captain will usually give two chimes. This is the FA’s permission to leave their seats and begin setting up for service. This is not an indicator for passengers! If a passenger does get up they may hear the flight attendant say, “Just have to tell you, the seatbelt sign is on.” This is not to scold but essentially to cover our butts if turbulence hits and said passenger suffers a concussion and wants to sue. You are an adult and are free to make your own decisions, but we want to be able to say, well, we told you so!
2. RANDOMLY HANDING TRASH TO FA’S. If I don’t have a trash bag in my hand or if I am not pushing a trash cart, I’m not ready for your trash! If I collect your trash then others around will try to give me theirs as well and I simply do not have enough hands. What’s more, I could be answering a call button as I head down the aisle that was pressed by a passenger with a medical emergency who requires much more important assistance.
3. INTERRUPTING FA’S DURING THE SAFETY DEMO. Folks, this is the most important thing we do during the flight whether you choose to pay attention or not. Asking if your checked bag made it on board (something we have NO WAY of confirming) is not an excuse for interrupting me as I point out the emergency exits.
4. GETTING HUFFY ABOUT HAVING TO USE AFT LAV(S) WHEN WE BLOCK OFF FRONT LAV(S) WHEN OPENING COCKPIT DOOR. Two Words: September Eleventh
5. ASKING ABOUT YOUR CONNECTION! Whatever we say, whether truth or lie, you are only going to hear what you want to hear! Truth be told, we know very little about what goes on outside the airplane. There is no such thing as “Flight Attendant Ground Control” where we can call or log in and check on your flight. The pilots have access to this information but as I have told passengers many-a-time, “I think it best that we not bother them with all that and let them FLY THE AIRPLANE!”
Tagged as: flight attendant, pilot
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