Maybe you remember the title lyrics from Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff's song. If you do, sing along with me. If not, look it up. Last week officially marked the summer season. For students and teachers (which I am formerly both) marks the long awaited, long anticipated break known as vacation. For parents, it’s the time of year we try to figure out what we are going to do for and with our children; or how to keep them busy for the summer. For flight crew, it’s the business time of year. Flight loads are filled to capacity especially with children. This is the time of year we don’t particularly care for. Airlines add more flights that need coverage. Passengers are more stressed to get to their vacation destination because vacation time is limited. Children are crying, or restless from the experiences of traveling and flights are so full flight crew have a difficult time with our own attempts of non-revenue travel. Here are tips for ANYONE that is traveling during the summer months to reduce stress.
EXPECT AND PREPARE FOR THE WORSE
Summertime is notorious for thunderstorms, tropical storms, tornadoes….you name it! Keep in mind, a single aircraft and crew can very well be travelling from East Coast to West in one day which means weather delays are inevitable. (See my previous blog about delays.) Weather is something you can’t really predict but downloading a weather app is good to have to know what to expect. Flight crews typically use MyRadar which pinpoints your location and shows weather patterns. You can expand the map to see weather across the country or wherever you need to keep an eye on. Remember, other than re-booking your flight, airlines do not offer compensation for weather delays. Be prepared to spend the night in the airport city and come up with a contingency plan. I’m sitting in Chicago (my base) as I write this. Our flight from O’Hare to Detroit then back has been cancelled. I doubt my intended passengers will be getting out to Detroit tonight. If you are an avid traveler, having a reward/loyalty program would be helpful to use hotel points for days like this. Always budget for an unexpected day like hotels, food and maybe an unplanned vacation activity.
GOOD FOOD = GOOD MOOD
Yesterday, we were delayed about 40 minutes also due to weather. We were coming from Newarkto Chicago and we had about 3 families on board and they all had children. One family in particular had two children around 10-12 years old and two parents. Once we got out of our jumpseats to begin beverage service, the mother pushed the flight attendant call button to tell us they wanted food. She opened the food page in the magazine and told me she wanted one of everything on the page and then her husband told me they wanted three of another item. I informed them we didn’t have all the items they were looking for (which most aircrafts are not fully stocked with all the food enough for the entire aircraft). I told them we needed to get set up and when we come down the aisle we would assist them. The woman was so upset and said her children are hungry. Of course, I was thinking…..that’s not my problem…..but I would NEVER say that. So I told her we would gladly sell her what we had. Now to my point…..people are R-U-D-E when they are hungry. So as a flight attendant, my suggestion is keep food and/or snacks with you at all times. Airport/airplane food can not only be expensive but also unhealthy. Plan ahead. I’m not saying pack for three or four days, but healthy snacks and fillers will be helpful for everyone. Grilled chicken, tuna packs, deli meats or even jerky meats are easy to carry and don’t need much refrigeration. Apples, oranges, nuts, cheese are also great snacks to have on hand. As a Flight Attendant, snacks are a must for you to be pleasant.
YES, YOU SHOULD BRING THAT!
If you check your main suitcase, it is helpful in the event of delays and cancellations, to have your essentials on hand with you. Toiletries, change of undergarments, medications, electronics chargers, medications, keys to house and or car; anything you must have overnight. There is a chance you may get separated from your suitcase overnight due to delays and you should be prepared.
Flight attendants that are traveling non-revenue, always have your things in a carry-on and that should suffice. Learn to ‘PACK LIGHT’ (Singing in my Erykah Badu voice). You never know when you may get on a flight, or not and you have to be flexible and not worried about checked luggage. I once checked luggage on a direct flight from O’Hare to Los Angeles. Based on the oversold flights and summer delays, I had to fly from Chicago to Boise, spend the night in Boise then to Los Angeles the next morning. My checked luggage went on without me. I started to fly to Vegas and stay a couple extra days as opposed to going to LA, but then I remembered my luggage. I stopped checking luggage after that situation
That last few quick suggestions I have are this…..
1. Dress in layers; especially in the summer. Some aircrafts are cold with good air systems and some are hot. Many aircrafts no longer supply blankets. For women, essential items are socks (if you wear sandals), sweater and even a light scarf.
2. Come with your electronics fully charged; and even have a backup battery.
3. If you are connecting through a city; research what you can do in that city in the event you are delayed or stuck for a day.
4. Always have positive mental attitude. You can’t predict or change the weather. Getting upset at ground or flight crew only makes matters worse for you then transfers to others.
5. Look at any experience as an ADVENTURE. Be prepared to make new and exciting adventures out of bad situations you can’t change.
FLIGHT ATTENDANTS
Our job is not always fun, but we can surely make the best of any situation. Today we’ve been sitting around for 5 hours and we are still waiting. Now that I’m done with this blog post….I’m going to sit back have some popcorn and watch a movie while I wait. Nice way to get partially paid.
FLYING IS AN ADVENTURE; MAKE THE MOST OF EVERY OPPORTUITY!