Galley Gossip: Crew luggage, rolling vs folding & lifting heavy bags

by Heather Poole on

I just read the New York Times article about your packing advice for travelers. What is the brand and model of the carry-on luggage that you used in the slideshow? – Michelle

The bag featured in the article is a Travelpro 22″ flight crew series 3. My company also provides airline personnel with an 18″ rollaboard. For whatever reason neither one of the bags are featured on Travelpro’s website, but they do offer something similar – a 20″ and 22″ expandable rollaboard under the Crew 7 Series. If you’re looking to buy a new suticase, my advice is to play it safe and go with the smaller one. While I like my 22″ suiter and use it whenever I’m taking long trips, commuting to work for a week straight, or on vacation with another family member using only one bag, I prefer the smaller 18″ suitcase for the majority of my travel.

Savvy travelers know how to pack light. I do this by planning outfits around two pairs of shoes. While the suiter works well when I need it, it’s too big and bulky for shorter trips. Fully packed it doesn’t always fit inside overhead bins on smaller, older aircraft – at least that’s what I’ve been told. Though it does fit just fine on a 767. As for the 737, I’d been warned repeatedly by coworkers it wouldn’t fit, but I was able to get it inside both a regular and reconfigured overhead bin. That said, I didn’t have anything packed inside the suiter section of the bag. Who knows, maybe I got lucky. Maybe my colleagues pack too much. All I know is I got it inside the bin without a struggle and didn’t have to check it.

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Rolling is definitely better than folding, but I find that clothes which don’t need to be folded at all are better off packed flat. I usually pack everything flat except for pants and heavy shirts and sweaters. I make sure I’m wearing my heaviest clothing on the plane. Even thin shirts are packed more efficiently by lying flat and folding the sleeves over, alternating them north and south so the folded parts don’t bulk up. Of course, the rolling method is more convenient once you get there if you are going to be living out of your bag rather than operating from a base. Pulling out clothes packed flat is a pain – Ray

I, too, prefer folding my clothes to rolling on shorter trips because I have less clothing to pack. To avoid wrinkles, I lay uniform items flat in the bag, ends of the dress, pants, or blazer hanging out on one side. Then I’ll place folded items on top. When I’m done, I flip what was hanging out of the bag on top of the folded items. To give you a better idea of what I’m talking about check out photos 9-11 in The New York Times slideshow.

By using the rolling method I’m able to pack more inside my bag. This is why I always roll my clothes on longer trips. And just like you said, Ray, it is easier to get in and out of a bag when clothes have been rolled without creating a mess. As for avoiding wrinkles, make sure to roll your clothing really tight, pulling out the sides and then smoothing the material every three rolls. Or just pack clothes that don’t wrinkle easily. That’s what I do. Certain fabrics are your friend. Think cashmere and jersey. If I do end up with wrinkles, I’ll hang my clothes in the bathroom while I take a hot shower. If that doesn’t work, I’ll call down for an iron. Most hotels have them.

How much did your suitcase weigh when you had finished packing? Can you lift it into the overhead rack by yourself? Thanks. I look forward to reading your blog. – Nancy

I didn’t actually weigh the bag on a scale, but I can tell you this, Nancy, it was heavy, very very heavy! And yes, I could lift it by myself into the overhead bin. Though I’m not sure if anyone else could. For the record, I would never bring on board a bag I couldn’t lift on my own. Why should anyone other than myself be responsible for what I’ve packed? If for whatever reason I can’t lift my bag (like back when I was pregnant or when I broke my toe and wound up on crutches), I check it. Which brings me to a little pet peeve of mine – Flight attendant pet peeve #3: You want me to do what!

How to lift a heavy bag into an overhead bin:

1. Bend at the knee, using leg muscles not back muscles

2. Keep the bag close to your body, distributing the weight of the bag evenly on both sides.

3. Avoid twisting. Pivot with the feet instead

4. If possible, place bag flat on a seat back and then lift the bag using both hands into the bin.

Your bag looked big. It’s worth noting that International airlines have very restrictive weight limits for carry-ons – they range from 13 to 22 pounds – far less than the more liberal weights allowed in North America. – Steve

This is true. International carriers are a lot more strict with what passengers bring on board. But I’ve been pretty lucky in terms of traveling with my 22″ suiter overseas. Last year I visited Italy – Venice, Positano and Rome – with a bag just as full as it was on the slideshow, if not more so, and I was allowed to roll it on board both Ryan Air and Air One without a hassle. My husband takes it to London twice a year and he’s never had a problem either.

A miracle in a carry on – but no underwear? – Marie

I can not tell you how many people, complete strangers, have emailed me about my underwear! Or lack thereof. Even my own mother had something to say. Here’s the deal. I wear it. I pack it. I just didn’t want the entire world seeing it! I felt weird enough rolling a nightie, let alone my skivvies! Underwear is small and easy to pack so just throw it in and be done with it.

Galley Gossip: Do flight attendants hang out with pilots on layovers?

by Heather Poole on

Dear Heather,

is it common that you associate with pilots when on layovers? Also after each leg of a trip, does everyone go to the bar? I can’t imagine this is a great family lifestyle for those married.

Just My Thoughts

Dear Just My Thoughts,

Do pilots and flight attendants spend time together on layovers? Sometimes. Depends on the crew. Also depends on the length of the layover. At my airline, the majority of our domestic layovers average 10 hours. Add a delay or a mechanical into the mix (they happen!) and that 10 hour layover quickly becomes a nine hour layover. That’s not enough time to do much other than sleep, eat and shower.

As for international flying, imagine you’re in a foreign country far away from home with twenty four hours to kill and you don’t speak the language. Now imagine yourself in a strange city several times a month – month after month, year after year after year. It’s only natural for people with things in common to spend time together. Would you prefer to spend all that time away from home alone? Now keep in mind that airline crews who do have time to meet up at a hotel bar for a quick drink are probably just too exhausted from jet lag to do anything other than take an elevator downstairs and sit on a stool. Not to mention, the majority of our layover hotels offer airline employees discounts on food and beverage. If there’s one thing crew members have in common, its we’re a frugal bunch.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, working for an airline is not just a job, it’s a lifestyle, a very unusual one. Not many people can handle it. Our schedules are always changing, making it difficult to create long term plans. We work holidays and weekends and we’re away from home for days at a time. A lot of that time is spent associating with coworkers – on the airplane and at hotels. This is why we need a significant other who is confident and loyal, a person who is independent and can deal with last minute changes. They also have to be able to make spur of the moment decisions that include back up plans A, B, & C – just in case something goes wrong, because when you work for an airline, something is bound to go wrong.

Because my husband is a frequent flier who travels over 100,000 miles a year for business, he knows what it’s like, really like, to travel. That’s why he doesn’t get worked up if I find myself exploring the city with a colleague of the opposite sex. In fact, we encourage each other to to go out and enjoy ourselves. The time spent away from each other actually does our marriage good. We certainly don’t take each other for granted and we always cherish the time we have together. If that doesn’t make for a good marriage, I don’t know what does.

Photo Courtesy of Gurms

Galley Gossip: Enter to win two business class tickets to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific!

by Heather Poole on

Until May 31, 2010 Cathay Pacific is giving away two free tickets in business class from any city to Hong Kong, as well as three nights’ accommodation at The Upper House, a portrait session with campaign photographer Andrew J. Loiterton, and eight times the Asia Miles you earn flying on Cathay Pacific from now until the end of May. Now that I have your attention, keep reading. Contest details can be found at the bottom of this post.

Whenever I’m just hanging out in the galley between services chatting with frequent fliers, I’ll ask them to name their favorite airline. On most occasions their eyes glaze over and this look of contentment washes across their face. I’ve seen the look dozens of times. I know what they’re going to say before they even say it. Cathay. The word is always followed by a long deep sigh. Sometimes I’ll even sigh along with them. What follows next is usually an awkward silence. That’s when I’ll ask about their favorite airport restaurant, just to get the conversation flowing again.

Last year when my husband’s original Cathay Pacific flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong canceled, I was thrilled. Because the airline generously bumped him from business class to first class free of charge on a flight departing the following morning. He was upset about losing 24 hours in Hong Kong, but I knew it would be more than worth the inconvenience. The husband had his doubts. As soon as his flight touched ground, he sent the following email.

This flight was better than anyone could put in words. I have my own little cabin with a desk internet and movies. I was given a Shanghai Tzen pajama set and amenity kit and a huge down pillow and comforter. My seat reclines to a full bed and I have a privacy shield. I even used all the cool lotions in the two bathrooms shared by fourteen people. The toilet was spotless the entire trip. The food and presentation was better than a restaurant. I have to list all that I ate before I forget…

Smoked salmon shashimi with Caviar. Cream of mushroom soup. Salad greens with scallops and shrimp. AND THAT WAS ONLY THE APPETIZER! Lunch consisted of lobster stir fry with soup bok choy and a cold tofu salad. After two more movies I had a hot panini with prosciutto grilled veggie and cheese. Another movie and noodle soup with duck breast. NO FAT. Pure breast. Dinner wasn’t as good. Large fruit plate followed by grilled rack of lamb and potatoes. That’s okay because the coffee is great.

The guy sitting beside me said I would never be able to fly in business class again now that this has happened. He might be right. If I can’t swindle an upgrade home I think I may pay the difference. If I had to turn around now and fly right back to LA I would be very happy. We’re about to land so I think I’m going to go to the bathroom and shave or something. Maybe a facial? Don’t be jealous. I love you!

Don’t be jealous? How!

What’s not to love about an airline that provides that kind of service? And is it just a coincidence that the airline also takes pride in the very people providing the amazing service? Have you seen the latest marketing campaign, Meet The Team, featuring the men and women of Cathay Pacific? Read their stories and get to know the flight attendants, pilots, and other staff as both members of the Cathay family and as individuals. Find out what makes them who they are and how they see their role at Cathay. Then you’ll be ready to play to win!

Each week until May 31, 2010 Cathay will post a question on the Meet the Team mini-site. Answers can be found in the staff stories. People who answer correctly will automatically be entered into the contest. Thirteen questions will be presented. This means there are thirteen chances to win! Also, don’t forget to connect with Cathay on Facebook and Twitter where staff will be sharing their favorite places to visit during their travels. Good luck!

Photos courtesy of Bernard SD and Steven W. Belcher

Galley Gossip: Will the volcanic eruption trigger a baby boom?

by Heather Poole on

During 9/11 I was stuck in Zurich, Switzerland for over a week. Sure there are much worse places to be, but I spent ninety percent of that time sitting around the airport waiting to get back to the United States. Every single day I checked out the hotel, dragged my bags a few blocks in the dark to the train station, and waited at the airport just like thousands of other stranded passengers. I was number 800-and-something on the standby list and all the flights departing to the US – two of them a day – were full. Some passengers became impatient and decided to rent a car and drive to airports in neighboring countries in the hope of getting out sooner. A few days later they were back. The rest of us just sat around waiting for our names to be called. It didn’t take long for strangers from all over the world to become friends.

Now with a volcanic ash cloud over Iceland shutting down European air space, thousands of passengers are stranded at airports around the world. With so many passengers spending time together, I can’t help but wonder if any love connections have formed over the last few days. What can I say, I’m romantic like that. Put a group of people together, throw in a natural disaster, and relationships are bound to form. And with all that time just hanging around airport hotels with nothing to do but, well, ya know, babies are bound to be born nine months later. Don’t ya think?

Remember the 2003 New York City blackout? I wanted to know if it resulted in a rise in births. So I did a little research and found out that the baby boom theory after a disruptive event is an urban legend. Isolated events like blackouts, and I’m going to assume erupting volcanos, do not cause babies to be born. It’s a misconception that people use their downtime to, well, ya know, get busy. Apparently that is the last thing on their mind. Don’t know why. I guess they’re just a little too busy waiting to board a flight that isn’t going to leave for days than to get jiggy with it. So what does cause a baby boom? According to Judith Nolte of “American Baby” magazine in an article written in 2003, the only thing that will create a baby boom is a surging number of women who are fertile. Like we didn’t know that.

I don’t care what the scientists and baby experts say, I predict there will be quite a few babies born as a direct result of Eyafjallajokul erupting. So what do you say we help name all those little volcano babies? After I sent out a tweet asking for a few suggestions, the names came pouring in. Valen, one of the more interesting ones, came from Infobitsystems. It’s a variant of Valentinus; the name of more than fifty saints and three Roman emperors. Now that’s a powerful name! NavyAirCrewman came up with Pele for a girl (Hawaiian volcano goddess) and Hephaistos for a boy (Greek god of fire). Now it’s up to you to decide.

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Photo courtesy of OMI

Galley Gossip: Switching seats, exit row safety & asking for upgrades

by Heather Poole on

Recently on a flight a passenger took the empty seat beside me. He had an assigned seat that he left behind. If by luck of the draw I had an empty seat (true not paid for), then it seems to me that as a beneficiary of said luck that I have inherited certain rights. If the other guy had stayed in his OWN seat, I would have had the enjoyment of more space. His moving AFFECTED me. The only reason I point this out is because while my situation was benign, I know that sometimes these little irritations or frictions on flights escalate into real on board conflicts (fights), and while I am describing out a pretty subtle point here, I think that it is better for the flight crew to mediate between passengers using preventive practices (etiquette, courtesies, “rules” etc.) rather than letting passengers resolve them themselves, in those cases where we are dealing with seat assignments at least. – Trevor

I’m going to tell you what 90% of the flight attendants I know would say. You paid for a seat. One seat. Not two seats. Not an entire row. Just a single seat. So if a passenger wants to switch seats, that’s okay. The passenger is allowed to sit in “your” row. While at my airline passengers are free to move to any open seat available in their ticketed cabin, other airlines (regional carriers dealing with weight and balance issues and airlines who charge extra for certain seats in the same cabin), require passengers to ask a flight attendant before swapping seats. If the flight attendant says it’s okay, it’s okay, the passenger can move.

Just because you were lucky enough to to score an entire row to yourself does not mean you have “inherited certain rights.” Oh sure it’s annoying when someone who already has a seat invades your space, but imagine you are the one stuck in an undesirable seat and there are two open seats in the row behind you, wouldn’t you move? Should a passenger have to suffer just because someone else is the “beneficiary of said luck” when there is plenty of room for both passengers to stretch out and relax?

In the future, if you’d rather not sit next to anyone, try making your row a little less appealing. The most popular seat on the airplane is the aisle seat. Take it! Otherwise someone will plop down beside you. Then, after takeoff, spread out. Pull the tray table down and place something on top of it. Put a bag, coat, or book in the seat beside you. Pretend to sleep. Not many people are ballsy enough to wake a sleeping passenger. Try traveling with a packet of Kleenex. No one wants to sit next to the sick guy. Or better yet, travel with a child. Works for me. Passengers avoid kids like the plague. That said, if someone still wants to sit in your row, they can. So be prepared to move your things out of the way.Airlines are charging for exit row seats and I have been on two flights where they have remained empty and flight attendants required payment from passengers who requested to switch to them. My question is what happens in case of an emergency landing? Do you think it is safer to have an able bodied person willing to open the door sitting there? I can visualize pandemonium as people rush to the door. I think gate agents or flight attendants should be able to offer these seats to qualified passengers! – Laura

While it makes sense to have willing and able bodied passengers who meet the exit row criteria seated in an exit row in case of an emergency evacuation opposed to leaving those seats vacant, FAA does not deem it necessary. I could tell you why I think this is, but it doesn’t matter what I think, or what you think for that matter. It is what it is. My question to you is, if flight attendants and agents working for an airline charging an extra fee for the exit row could move passengers to the vacant seats for free, how would they determine which lucky passengers to choose without creating the same type of pandemonium? With all that leg room, the exit row is the most sought after row on the airplane! That said, I understand why some airlines, mostly discount carriers, are charging the extra fee. They have to stay in business somehow!

At my airline we do not charge a fee for the exit row, but our ticket prices are higher than most discount carriers and the exit row is often blocked just for frequent fliers. Nine times out of ten the most elite frequent fliers occupy the exit row and bulkhead seats. So while my airline isn’t charging a fee for the row, they are asking for something even more – passenger loyalty. It comes in the form of miles. So what’s worse, an airline charging a small price to anyone willing to pay for the extra space, or an airline who only rewards a select few? Wouldn’t you rather be able to purchase the seat than not even have a shot at it?

This summer my husband and I will be traveling internationally. (New York to Warsaw) We have never asked for an upgrade to first class. If the agent says there are seats available, is there a charge? Or just willingness to fill a few seats? Additionally, what is the “polite” way to request an upgrade? – Lecia

While it never hurts to ask, it’s highly unlikely you will get an upgrade to first class free of charge. Not with airlines losing money the way they are these days. Because so many people travel often, it’s unfair to upgrade one group of passengers over another without going through the proper procedures. Trust me, passengers are keeping tabs. If an agent were to upgrade a passenger for free, rest assured that agent would hear about it in the form of a complaint letter from another passenger who also wanted an upgrade. For an airline employee, upgrading passengers for free is not worth losing a job over. Remember passengers are miserable, flights are full, and agents are under a lot of pressure to get airplanes out on time, so if you decide to give it a shot, be polite, friendly, and honest about what you want. Agents have heard it all, every story in the book, from pregnancy to bad backs. An honest approach will only work to your advantage. Whatever you do, do not hover over an agent. That will only work against you. Simply wait until the agent has a free moment to ask your question, and then, after your request has been made, step away from the desk. The last thing an agent needs is added stress.


Photos courtesy of Matt Sidesinger and Rnair