JetBlue flight attendant assaults elderly woman or vice versa? One of them is to pay fines

by Jamie Rhein on

Imagine your grandmother (or mother) being grabbed by the arm and moved down a plane aisle by a flight attendant. Is the flight attendant being gentle and understanding? Respectful? Particularly since your grandmother is from another culture and has been in route for 30-hours. In the case of Talat Taharia, a woman from Pakistan, the Jet Blue flight attendant forcibly moved her from the exit aisle and made her sit next to someone she doesn’t know. Taharia, however is looking at a planeload of fines. Here’s why.

According to the flight attendant, she had Taharia move from the exit row 15 times and Taharia “yanked her down the aisle.” Taharia is countering with that’s impossible. After all, look at her.

From this article’s description, it seems that Taharia wasn’t just in the exit row seat, but stretched out in the exit row floor trying to catch some shut eye. Poor thing, she’d been traveling for 30 hours, after all. She was pooped and saw some space. Maybe she’s not that big, a bitty person actually, not even her big toe would get in the way of the drink cart, and figured what’s the harm?

Also, according to the flight attendant, When the flight attendant asked her to move, it was Taharia who became crabby and grabby. She actually assaulted the flight attendant. The flight attendant said she could have been arrested even.

Who is right? Who pushed and who pulled? How many times did Taharia lay her head on the plane’s floor looking for some peace and quiet? The FAA has just thrown a book of fines, to the tune of $6,000, at Taharia.

Here’s what I envision happening. A misunderstanding where both people were not patient enough. To Taharia, the exit seat was open, and so was the floor, therefore up for grabs. One can sleep wherever there’s a space on trains. Why not planes? I’m also wondering how well she understands English, particularly when rattled. Also, considering that she just left family in Pakistan, and it’s not the most stable place on the planet, her emotions may have already been on edge.

The flight attendant, doing her job, saw safety first, and may not have known a darned thing about elderly women originally from Pakistan which may have heightened the problem. Only people who can handle the job of being in an exit row in case there’s a disaster are supposed to sit in one of those seats. The elderly woman was showing she couldn’t take directions all that well. Still, why not take the time out to help the woman find a solution to wanting to get some sleep? Supposedly the flight from Pakistan to the U.S. wasn’t full. Offer a suggestion about laying down across seats if there is an empty row, and whatever you do, don’t put an older woman next to a person she doesn’t know.

Here’s a truth about human behavior, when pushed negatively, people respond–negatively. From what I read, these two needed a mediator. That day back in November was not good for either one of them. [komonews.com]

Booking an Emirates flight? Save $100 today only

by Grant Martin on

If you’ve got any transoceanic travel coming up in the next few months, today is a great day to buy tickets. Why, you ask? Because Emirates, one of the best airlines on the planet, is having a one day sale where they’re taking $100 off any online booking.

This could be your opportunity to try out one of the hottest carriers for a discounted price, or maybe get $100 back on the primo-expensive first class tickets from New York to Dubai. Emirates is also one of the only two carriers flying the A380, so if you’ve been itching for an excuse to fly one of the giant creatures of the sky, you’ve got it. And for those of you in Australia and New Zealand, Emirates offers very competitive service between your two countries (in addition to the A380 SYD-AKL route.)

Check out details and book your tickets at Emirates.com.

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The top 5 myths about getting upgraded

by Grant Martin on

Business class. The promised land in the front of the aircraft with wider seats, free drinks, meals and checked bags. Who wouldn’t want to take the opportunity for a free upgrade once in a while?

Yes, it is possible to purchase a coach ticket, work the system and get upgraded to the front of the airplane. Is it easy? No. Is there an inexpensive shortcut? Not really. Contrary to many empowering articles out there, upgrades are a tightly controlled, regimented benefit that are doled out to only a few deserving passengers.

Many of the oft repeated tricks to sneaking up front have expired with new technology, prolific resources on the web and plain old common sense. So we’ve compiled the top five myths about getting upgraded to save you time and embarrassment at the airport. Read on for the details.1. Dress to impress: We’re well past the days when passengers dressed up for the pleasure of flying on an airplane. Any ticket agent, gate agent or flight attendant knows that people from all walks of life fly in business class. There are days when the Fortune 500 CEO wears a hooded sweatshirt and buys a first class ticket and days when the neighborhood plumber has enough miles to upgrade. Either way, if you dress nice thinking that you’ll be selected for an upgrade, you’re probably just going to be uncomfortable in coach.

2. See an empty seat? Grab it. Flight attendants have manifests that show which passenger is sitting in which seat and whether or not they got upgraded (haven’t you ever seen Executive Decision?). So if you happen to find a seat up front that hasn’t been taken and are able to slip in, they’re going to notice during the preflight checks and you’re going to get the boot.

3. Ask the flight attendant for an upgrade. Flight attendants have no control over who gets upgraded when – there always might be one last business class passenger coming down the jet bridge right before departure, so they can’t give away a seat. After the boarding door is closed? Maybe if you’re discreet, but with everyone watching, the flight attendant will most definitely say no.

4. Ask the ticket agent to put a special code on your e-ticket. This just doesn’t happen. Any request for upgrades are managed by a different system that’s independent of your reservation. If they add anything to your ticket or boarding pass it’s going to be SSSS.

5. Be charming and polite. While airline employees will surely appreciate your kind behavior, any deviation from the set upgrade process shows favoritism and is something that the agent could get nailed for. Shouldn’t you always be charming and polite anyway?

It’s important to remember that behind paid upgrades, the entire engine behind getting moved up front is fueled by elite status, the preferential treatment that one earns after flying a certain high volume of miles — usually over 25k. If you’re close or you think that you’ll get close to that limit this year, you should check out Gadling’s Guide to Mileage Running.

So the fact of the matter is, 90% of upgrades are managed by a computer system that automatically upgrades those who pay for an upgrade and elite passengers that worked hard to earn them. The other 9.5% of upgrades are handled by gate agents at the airport who sweep up any elites or paid upgrades that fell through the cracks. That remaining 0.5%? That’s your window of opportunity. Better think of a creative approach.

Breaking: Air France Airbus A330 disappears outside of Brazil

by Grant Martin on

An Airbus A330-200 carrying over 200 passengers lost radar contact off the coast of Brazil late last night. The flight was apparently reporting electrical problems experienced during turbulence on its route between Rio de Janeiro and Charles de Gaulle Paris.

Hope is still standing for some reemergence of the aircraft, although it has been several hours since contact was lost. In addition, the Brazilian Air Force has been deployed to the last sight of contact in order to search for any sings of the aircraft.

If AF447 did go down, this would be the first large jet crash in over seven years. We’ll keep you updated on the story

Galley Gossip: Airline uniforms (plus a chance to win free tickets on Olympic Airlines)

by Heather Poole on

Just like Cliff Muskiet, the uniform freak, I have a thing for airline uniforms. I think most flight attendants do. In fact, inside my guestroom closet hangs three different uniform styles from two different airlines. I’ve saved it all – the pants, the skirts, the dresses, the jackets, the vests, the blouses, the wings, and even the blue tie I snapped around my neck and the epaulets I wore on both shoulders with the pleated Bermuda shorts and high heels at Sun Jet International Airlines. Talk about embarrassing. I still own everything except for the silky red and blue scarf I wore thirteen years ago when I first got hired to fly for the airline I currently work for. Oh how I wish I still had that scarf. I wore it off to the side, tied in a knot around my neck. That simple scarf made the conservative navy blue polyester uniform appear sexy and feminine.

“I loved that navy blue coat dress we wore years ago,” said Cady, an ex flight attendant who is also my very best friend.

Personally, I prefer the look of the white starched blouse paired with the navy blue knee length skirt and fitted blazer, even though I always end up wearing the uniform dress. As a commuter, I have to pack what’s easy.

Now my all time favorite airline uniform is worn by the flight attendants of Air France. Though they look great, I’m not quite sure how I would actually feel about serving drinks while wearing the big red bow at 35,000 feet. Delta looks fantastic in navy blue with just a hint of red. However the white bell sleeves, while stylish, seem like they could easily get dirty. That could be a problem for me. I’m a bit of a mess when I get stuck working in the galley, and a dirty uniform is an ugly uniform. Emirates‘ uniform is pretty nice – that is if you look good in Khaki and don’t mind wearing a head scarf. The worst airline uniform has to be First Choice Airways. I mean seriously, pink?

As I began writing this post, I wondered what others thought about all the different airline uniforms, so I posed the question, which airlines have the best uniforms, on twitter.com and here’s what a few people had to say…

  • Flyingphotog: ” I think Virgin Atlantic’s uniforms are awesome. They’ll make you turn your head. Well… at least if you’re a guy they will. US Airways f/a uniforms are super-boring.
  • Paulrobichaux: “I really like Delta’s red-dress uniform. very classy looking.”
  • HeatherMark: “I love Delta’s red wrap dress. The fabric doesn’t look breathable, tho. Those Virgin girls always look fabu, too.
  • Wkali13: “I’m partial to Delta’s uniforms. They always look so professional.”
  • CBI28: “best uniform: Air France-I love that dress with the red bow. Worst-First Choice in Britain, a.k.a. the pink flamingos”
  • Mathew: “Best – Quantas long haul. Worst is Virgin Atlantic & United Airlines
  • Brajit: “AAs uniforms are dowdy. Skybus uniforms were AWFUL! “
  • AKnickerson: “Worst? Don’t know. But best: Korean Air. They are gorgeous! Very chic!”
  • Clipperkid747: “I like Lufthansa uniforms. They do look classy.
  • Tlonyc: “Got to like the laid back look of Southwest, but not as much as Delta. United and US Airways at the bottom.”
  • Stgabriel08: “if you are including foreign airlines, thumbs up to Emirates and Thai Air, thumbs down to Singapore Air”
  • Tyflyguy: “my vote for worst uniform HAS to be Southwest.”
  • FlightattdntJen: “oh God!The old Air Canada green ones: HIDEOUS! Affectionately named by passengers as the “vagina dress” Yay for new ones!”

Okay, for the record, I have never heard of the vagina dress, but now I must see it, so I emailed Jen and asked her to send me a photo. She said she would.

So why all this talk about flight attendant uniforms? Because Olympic Airlines’ flight attendants and pilots are getting new uniforms and you can help choose the final design. You’ve got until June 7th to vote, so click here to go to the website and pick your favorite uniform design. A few voters will even be chosen to win airplane tickets to destinations in Greece and abroad! Warning: the website is not in English. But good luck anyway!

For those of you still with me, I hope you enjoy this youtube video featuring airline uniforms of yesterday and today…

Photo courtesy of (two flight attendants) Dmytrok, (flight attendant in red) Sagado Corazon