Galley Gossip: Airline seniority, bidding & working undesirable trips

by Heather Poole on
Dear Heather,

Since when do you have Oklahoma City layovers? Heather, Heather, Heather……I’ve always envisioned you as A View From The Top, Transcon, 767, New York to LA Princess. It’s really hard for me to picture you on a Super80 Oklahoma City two-day. What gives?

Yours truly,

Ron “The frequent-flyin, two-timin cheat“

PS Did Miss Oklahoma really sit in economy?

PSS Did your dress really rip because of that leap out of the crew van, I mean…. well, we ALL now know what you had for breakfast that day! LOL!

Dear Ron,

Ya just had to go and bring up the Cracker Barrel, didn’t you! Thanks a lot. It’s official, I’m now on a diet. As for Miss Oklahoma, not only did the lovely Miss Taylor Treat sit in economy, she sat in a middle seat! Not once did she complain about it, either. I know who I’m going to vote for in the upcoming Miss America pageant!

I completely understand why you might be disappointed to learn I’m not the transcon princess you’ve dreamt about. From time to time I really do bid for Oklahoma City / El Paso / Nashville / Kansas City layovers. I know it’s hard to believe, but It’s kind of nice to shake things up. No matter how great a trip may be, after awhile it gets boring knowing what passengers are going to say before they even say it and only stocking the beverage cart with diet soda, club soda, bottled water, and extra limes when flying back and forth from New York to LA. Anyway, ya gotta do what ya gotta do to hold the holidays off. My Oklahoma City layover was just the price I had to pay to spend Thanksgiving at home with family.

SENIORITY – Refers to a flight attendants years of experience. Years of experience with an airline is based on date of hire. Seniority is everything at an airline. It determines what trips a flight attendant can “hold” and whether or not a flight attendant will serve reserve.

I have fifteen years seniority at my airline, which isn’t much considering many flight attendants have forty – plus years with the company. That’s why I commute from my home in Los Angeles (one of our most senior bases in the system) to New York (our most junior base). In New York I can hold great trips. More importantly, I’m off reserve.

BID, BIDS, BIDDING – a request of choice routes made by each flight attendant to fly specific monthly schedules. At the airline I work for, our bid sheet offers over hundreds of lines to choose from. Bids are awarded by company seniority. Ever wonder why the flights to Asia and Europe are staffed by our most senior crew members? Because it takes a lot of seniority to hold the best trips!

Each month I bid for the exact same trips: San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Dallas turns. Normally I’m awarded one of my top ten choices. But during a holiday month every flight attendant is trying to get the exact same days off, so I’ll bid a few “undesirable” trips just in case I can’t hold what I want. And that, Ron, is how I wound up with Oklahoma City layovers in November.

This month I got lucky. I’m off on Christmas eve, Christmas day, and New Year’s Eve! Of course it came at a price, a very steep one – a line of turns on the 757, and not just any line of turns, but a line of New York-Vail turns. I shudder just thinking about it. I mean what could possibly be worse than working a full 757 crammed with 160 passengers who all think they belong in first class. Not bad enough? Now imagine all those full length fur coats that MUST be hung at once in a closet barely big enough to house the coats and jackets belonging to those who are actually seated in first. And that’s just the beginning. We haven’t even taken off yet! But I’ll be home for Christmas and that’s all that matters.

Not to worry, Ron, things will be back to normal in January.

Happy Travels,

Heather

Photos courtesy of Heather Poole & Jennifer Pickens

Seven travel-related things to be thankful for

by Katie Hammel on

While travel as the act of discovering a new place can be exhilarating and exciting, travel as the act of being in transit can be annoying and exhausting. Long lines, delays, rude people and all the frustrations that go along with moving large amounts of people from A to B can make the physical movement involved with travel something to really complain about. But this Thanksgiving, I wanted to take a step back and think about all the travel-related things that we do have to be thankful for.

I’m thankful for the airlines.
I know, I know, we spend a lot of time griping about all the things the airlines are doing wrong. They run late, they lose our luggage and they charge us extra for everything, but without them, traveling would be a completely different experience. Thanks to the airlines, we can leave home and arrive on the other side of the world within a day – a single day. That kind of immediate access to a far off country was unfathomable just a few decades ago. Back then undertaking a long-distance journey meant days, if not weeks spent on a train or a trans-Oceanic boat ride. And for all but the rich, that kind of travel was cramped, uncomfortable, dirty, and often dangerous. So I’m thankful for the airlines, for making long-distance travel quick, affordable and safe, and for allowing us to travel the world with relative ease.
I’m thankful for hardworking airline and airport staff.
I’m very grateful to airline staff, especially to the good pilots (you know, the ones who aren’t too drunk, crazy or horny to do their jobs) who do everything in their power to get us all to our destinations safely. I’m thankful for mechanics, baggage handlers and ground crew who work hard and are rarely recognized for it (Seriously, just think about the massive coordination it must require to sort, load and unload all that luggage and you’ll be surprised more isn’t lost). And I am very, very thankful for the cheerful flight attendants who probably put up with far too much crap from stressed and cranky fliers, yet still manage to serve my vodka and cranberry drinks promptly and with a smile.
I’m thankful that booze is still served on flights.
Chris Elliot may think it’s time to get rid of the booze on flights, but as a nervous flier, this girl needs a cocktail or two to help stay calm during rough flights. I’m even more thankful for the handful of carriers that still offer free drinks on international flights. You guys get my business over an airline that charges for drinks, every time.
I’m thankful for a job that allows me to travel
It’s easy to lament the high cost of traveling or that fact that we never seem to have enough vacation time to fulfill all our travel dreams. But the truth is, for most middle-class workers, travel is very attainable. With a little bit of penny pinching and some attention to the budget, most people can scrape together enough money for at least one vacation per year.
But for the thousands of Americans who are supporting a family on an income that is at or below the poverty line, no amount of “cutting back” will allow them to afford a week in Spain, let alone a weekend in Florida. So I am thankful that my husband and I are able to earn an income that allows us to explore the world.
I’m thankful for the internet.
Before the internet, booking a trip was a difficult process, one best left to the professionals. But the invention of the internet and its easy access to nearly unlimited information has changed the way we plan trips. Now anyone can go online, search for the best flight fares, book tickets, search for a hotel, check the reviews, and make reservations all with a few clicks.
And even though we complain when wi-fi isn’t free at hotels and airports, I’m still just grateful that it exists at all. With wireless internet, I can stay connected and get important work done while I am waiting in the airport terminal, at my hotel, and even while I am 35,000 feet in the air! The idea of being “location independent”, of working from anywhere remotely, was unheard of 10-15 years ago. Now thousands of people are able to explore the world and stay connected to their careers.


I’m thankful for my American passport.
As an American, I am free to go almost anywhere in the world knowing that in most cases (with the exceptions of North Korea, Cuba….and maybe Paris), I’ll be welcomed with open arms. People in many other countries aren’t so lucky. For people of many other countries the Visa process is a long, complicated and expensive one, one that usually ends in rejection. Would-be visitors are turned away from our (and other) borders every day. Because we fear they may be terrorists or because we wonder if they might not plan on ever leaving, we refuse to let them in. But it’s very rare that we ever hear of an American tourist being denied entry to another country. It’s one thing I take for granted, but I’m very thankful that I have the freedom to travel the world as I please.

I’m thankful for my husband and my home.
I enjoy traveling by myself and with friends, but I love traveling with my husband the most. So I am thankful that I not only have a person in my life who loves me and supports my travel habit, but who also loves to travel as a couple with me. And I am thankful that after I venture out into the world, I have a loving home to return to.

So today, and everyday, let’s remember all the little things we have to be thankful for!

Galley Gossip – Miss Oklahoma, Pop Rocks, a ripped skirt & other strange things on planes

by Heather Poole on

Obviously the best thing about being a flight attendant is being able to travel at a moments notice, as long as there’s an open seat available on the flight. The second best thing about being a flight attendant has got to be all those days off! The third best thing about being a flight attendant is that we never know what the day will bring, and being able to leave that day behind as soon as we step off the plane – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Or the not so ugly as was the case on my last trip.

“I’m sorry,” whispered my coworker, cutting his eyes at Taylor Treat, the winner of the Miss Oklahoma pageant this year. “But I’m prettier than her.”

I looked at her, looked at him, looked back at her, and tried not to laugh. Because…well…In his own special way my colleague did indeed give the beauty queen a run for her money, all 200 pounds of him, with flawless coco butter skin, lashes as long as J-Lo, and….wait a minute, was that gloss? His lips were unusually shiny.

“Why Andre…” I handed a passenger a can of Dr. Pepper. “I do believe you’re jealous!”

Snorting, he slapped a beverage napkin down on a tray table and turned to the last row of passengers. “Something to drink?”

Just another day on the job.

It had started out like any other day, only on this particular day when we arrived at the Oklahoma City airport I ripped my skirt leaping out of the crew van like a world class athlete. I don’t know what I was thinking, trying to make that five foot jump to the curb. The sound of fabric splitting caused my entire crew to gasp, which caused me to walk backwards, or sideways, depending on where passengers were located, as I made my way into the airport, through security, and onto the airplane.

One thing I’ve learned over the years is that bad things can lead to good things. It’s true! Because if it weren’t for the ripped skirt I would have never met the passenger with the double-sided sticky tape, and if hadn’t met the sticky tape man, I would have never met the beautiful young woman sitting beside him, a woman who will actually be competing for the Miss America title in January. And that’s how I almost – ALMOST – got wear a sparkling crown during the beverage service. Only something tells me if I had worn it, Andre would have snatched it away and placed it on his own bald head.

One of the great things about being a flight attendant is that I meet all kinds of interesting people, flight attendants and passengers alike. Take for instance passenger 3B on our flight the day before. He sat in first class wearing a black polo shirt with the word POP ROCKS plastered across his chest in bright red letters.

“It must be an amazing feeling to walk through an airport terminal and make people smile,” I said eyeing the logo that now had me smiling my own first class smile.

He looked confused. “What do you mean?”

“Your shirt. It’s great. It brings back memories.”

Two seconds later twenty bags of Pop Rocks in the newest flavors were pressed into the palm of my hand. “I came prepared,” he said, and then went on to tell me that Mikey is not dead. In fact, not one kid ever exploded from mixing Pop Rocks with Coca Cola – in case you were wondering. You know you were!

Where are all those bags Pop Rocks now? Tucked away in my tote bag. They’re housed inside an airsick bag that was decorated with flowers, suns, and moons by an adorable five year-old girl named Hania who lives in Pakistan with two boisterous brothers who refused to keep their seat belts fastened and sit in their seats regardless of the illuminated sign or how often Hania and I told them to. I must admit, we became friends near the end of the flight, but I didn’t find the child all that adorable during boarding when she decided to lie down in the middle of the aisle in first class, holding up a long line of passengers who were trying to get to their seats. One would think her parents might try to move her along, but instead they just stood there smiling at me as I tried to coax the child off the floor and to her seat in the last row of coach.

Now back to the exploding candy housed in a bag featuring artwork by Hania. I’ve actually promised to send the Pop Rocks to a couple of people who follow me on Twitter that correctly guessed the number of passengers – nineteen – I had to personally ask to turn off and stow their electronic devices after the aircraft door had been shut and the announcement had been made. And that does not include the guy who sat next to my jumpseat on landing who decided to pull out his blackberry and start texting.

“Excuse me!” I said, eyeing the device.

“Oh,” he said, and turned it off.

Two seonds later a young man seated a row back pulled out his cell phone, the glow of the display illuminating his face in the dark. I could see his fingers dialing. I could also see the twinkling lights down below on the ground. I yelled from my jumpseat, “Can you turn that off and keep it off until we land, please!”

The commuting pilot sitting beside the kid just shook his head. Then he passed me a 4 x 6 photograph of a beautiful chocolate brown horse that lives on a farm in upstate New York. Very soon that horse may find himself saddled up on a couple of green acres in Texas. The pilot and I spent a good ten minutes talking about the benefits of having a horse, and now I’m thinking about taking a western style vacation with the family. The people you meet, the places you want to go…

Eventually we, the crew, as well as the Captain’s electric guitar, made it to our layover hotel in Oklahoma City. Once inside my room, I whipped open the floral print curtains, looked across the bare parking lot, and spotted it – a Cracker Barrel restaurant located directly across a busy street. Honestly, I think everyone should visit a Cracker Barrel at least once in their lives. It’s that good. The following morning I unleashed my inner Brittney (Spears) and dug into a plate of chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, and green beans. It was more than worth the calories, and anyway, calories don’t count while traveling! Not when traveling today is like being on an episode of Survivor in that you never know what’s going to happen. You’ve got to be prepared, not just for the worst, but for anything – especially if you’re a flight attendant. Three hours later I ripped my skirt.

Flight attendants fake strike to make point

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Contract negotiations between American Airlines and its flight attendants have stalled. So, the flight attendants kicked off a fake strike on Wednesday. At Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, they picketed, handed out leaflets and wore red badges, showing flights they feel couldn’t run without them. So, just think of how strong a real strike would have been! Similar protests were held at 12 other airports, as well.

Because of federal laws that intentionally make it difficult for airline industry employees to strike, the fake alternative was the best that could be summoned, at least on short notice. USA Today reports that gauging public support for a flight attendant strike is difficult, but union officials seem unwilling to roll the dice by disrupting flights, especially with the holiday season coming. Smart move: if fliers have demonstrated anything this year, it’s that they don’t give a shit about the airlines. They just want to get from Point A to Point B for as low a fare as possible.

And, public sentiment aside, it’s hard to draw blood from a stone. In less than two years, American’s parent company, AMR, has lost $3.2 billion, and revenue has taken a dive. So, what’s left for the flight attendants to demand?

The union and the airline have been trying to hash out a new contract since June 2008. The airline’s last pay cut came in 2003, at 33 percent. Since then, the flight attendants have picked up 1.5 percent annual pay raises — except in 2009, where compensation was stalled because the contract hasn’t moved.

American says they two sides have come to an agreement on around 75 percent of the items on the plate, but the union says the airline hasn’t put up a comp number yet. The flight attendants are pissed that they had to take a pay cut six years ago, while the airlines management continues to get sweetheart bonus deals.

Galley Gossip: Advice for the employees of US Airways

by Heather Poole on
Heather,

Yesterday the flight attendants got terrible news at US Airways. THREE base closures. Mine included. In all these years, I’ve never commuted. And now, gone early next year: BOS, LGA and LAS. We got the news in the crew room. Some of the senior girls started to tear up. One cried, “I have thirty years, I’ve never commuted.” The base is closing and we didn’t even receive any information on base transfers, voluntary furloughs, whether or not we can keep our parking lot space, bidding packets from the other bases and seniority lists to help make a decision. Any tips? Prayers? An Article to educate us newbies?

Sincerely,

In shock

Dear in shock,

I’m sorry to hear about the unfortunate news. I understand why you and your colleagues are frustrated and upset. Honestly, I’m not sure which is worse, your airline closing three bases or the fact that they did not alert employees until the last minute, only to do so with little to no information. These are your lives we’re talking about, not just base closures! While commuting is not always easy, it is doable, and chances are you might even become a better flight attendant because of it. I know I did. First, here’s the prayer you’re looking for. And now for a few tips…


1. EMBRACE IT – Now that you’ll be traveling like a real passenger….wait a minute, take that back, you’re the farthest thing from a real passenger. You’re at the bottom of the standby list and there’s nothing you can do about it. So stop fighting it and learn to enjoy it – as much as you possibly can. I do so by reading – a lot.

2. CHOOSE A BASE WISELY: Don’t choose the base with the best flying if you won’t be able to get there easily. Pick a base that offers several flights a day from your home city. And don’t go where everyone else who has just been displaced wants to go! I can’t tell you how many Dallas commuters think I’m crazy for commuting from California to New York. Yet their standby list is insane compared to mine. Not only do I always get on a flight, I usually end up with a pretty good seat! That’s because there aren’t that many LA commuters who work in New York. It also means in a worst case scenario the jump seat is mine!

3. GET CREATIVE: Because the flights are usually full, it’s not always easy getting to work. Prior to 9/11, I would fly to Toronto and connect to New York in order to avoid holiday traffic. Yeah, that was a little crazy, but it worked, even during the busy Christmas season! And don’t forget that sometimes those “thru” flights really aren’t thru flights at all. Many often stop at a hub city. Get to know these flights well, the ones that are scheduled to arrive in Kansas City but actually make a quick stop in a hub city, and then jump off and connect to where you really need to go.

4. BACK IT UP: Commuting can be stressful, which is why I arrange my schedule so that I’m only commuting once a month. I’ll back up my trips and work for several days in a row, flying as many hours as I can until I get the hours I need for the month. Sure it’s a killer, and half the time I have no idea where I am, whether I’m coming or going, but when I’m done I have the rest of the month off to recuperate. Don’t t waste your “days off” trying to get to and from work.

5. BID SMART: Forget about layovers. They no longer matter. Bid for “commutable trips.” Look for late departures and early returns. The layovers might be short, but this will enable you to travel to and from work on the days you’re scheduled to work, allowing your days off to remain just that – days off. That’s why we took this job, isn’t it – for the days off? If you do choose to back up your trips, look for a late departure on the first day of your first trip and an early return on the last day of your last trip. This will make bidding easier because what you work in-between these two trips won’t matter in terms of commuting.

6. FIND A CRASH PAD: If on reserve, find a crashpad and you won’t have to sleep in flight operations. I’m sure there’s a bulletin board somewhere in ops where you can find fliers from fight attendants looking for roommates. A crashpad usually averages around $150 per month. Or try calling airport hotels / motels offering free shuttle service to and from the airport and ask if they offer a “crew discount” on rooms that will only be occupied for a few hours. Once I overheard a pilot refer to this as an “emergency crew rate.” He got the room for next to nothing. Share the room with a fellow commuter to save a little cash.

7. GET TO KNOW THE GATE AGENTS: Agents have power, big time power, because they’re the ones controlling the seating chart. They decide whether or not you’ll get a middle seat – or if you get on a flight at all. Do yourself a favor and make friends with these people. It won’t be easy. They’re just as overworked as we are and they hear the exact same moans and groans from passengers as we do, so tread lightly, don’t become another one of their problems, and always, ALWAYS, respect the counter. Stand at least ten feet away. Remember, whether you’re an agent or a flight attendant, we’re all on the same team. Let’s try to treat each other that way.

8. WATCH THE WEATHER CHANNEL – It’s important to know what’s going on weather-wise around the country. If there’s a storm in the forecast on the day of your commute, you might want to get out a day earlier. If that’s not possible, make sure to get on the first flight of the day! Do not get caught up in delays that are bound to come later on in the day. A cancellation will nine times out of ten ruin your chance of getting to work. Save the “missed trip” for a time you really need it.

9. TRIP TRADING: If you don’t know how to do a “trip trade” you better learn quick! Often times, while commuting, there’s not enough time to ask for help when you desperately need to change your schedule. Otherwise you can do what I do and pay someone to do the dirty work for you. If I’m at the airport and unsure if I’m going to make it out, I’ll call my “trip trader” who will either drop the trip or trade it for a different trip later on in the month. If not for my trip trader, I don’t know what I’d do. She truly works magic and is worth every penny.

10. BECOME A BETTER FLIGHT ATTENDANT: Now that you’re stuck in a crap seat with nothing to do but analyze the flight attendants, you’ll have a better understanding of how the other half lives. I can honestly say I’ve mellowed out because of my commuting lifestyle. I now have a lot more patience and empathy for passengers than I did when I first started flying. Not only will this make you a better flight attendant, it will make you a more rounded individual. That, I think, is a gift.

Once you get over the initial shock, you and your colleagues will be just fine.

Good luck!

Heather Poole

Photos courtesy of carribb – US Airways, Heather Poole – woman reading & crashpad fliers