life of air hostess

The typical life of air hostess can be a hectic one. Just to give you some idea of the typical daily activities, the events are put into a time sequence to enable better comprehension.

3.30 am

It is time to wake up and get ready for flight... Good Morning
The alarm is set off for the preparation for the flight which is scheduled to depart at 7.00am. In the early hour at 4 am, the air hostess has apply her make up, put on her kebaya uniform and make sure my appearance is immaculate. Air hostess has to check in for the briefing at least 1 hour and 30 minutes prior to the aircraft departing. That mean for 7 am departure they have to at the airport at 0530 hrs.

0515 hours in the morning.

The typical life of air hostess, begins her day flying at the briefing room. She arrived in the Pre-Flight Brief Fifteen minutes before the pre-flight brief time. This gave her time to check her cabin manual to refresh with the emergency procedures and location of emergency equipment for the aircraft. She went into the pre-flight briefing which is being held on the aircraft and the senior crew talks through the flight details. This will normally include the order in which the services will operate for the flight, my responsibilities for the day and if there are any passengers with special needs flying i.e. you may be given the responsibility to explain the emergency facilities to a blind passenger on the particular aircraft you are operating on. You should also be prepared to be asked questions regarding safety and emergency procedures for that particular aircraft.

BEFORE THE PASSENGERS BOARD

Now the crew boarded the aircraft. It’s now time for you and your team to check your emergency equipment, that you have enough meals, drinks and duty free for the passengers, stock all the toilets with the necessary hand towels and tissues making sure its kept clean and tidy throughout the whole flight. Now the passengers are on the way, this is your final chance to check that your uniform is immaculate and presentable, all that’s left to do is smile and greet the passengers on board (bearing in mind its 6.30am in the morning). Remember you are the face of the airline so smiles are essential throughout the whole flight.


In Preparation of Take Off, all the passengers are now seated and the aircraft pushed back and prepares to taxi to the runway. It is now time to perform the safety demonstration so passengers can familiarise themselves with all the aircraft's emergency facilities. This will include pointing out the available emergency exits and lighting, the use of oxygen masks, seat belts and life jacket. You will complete your demonstration by checking through the cabin ensuring seatbelts are fastened and loose articles are secure for take off. You will now take your seat for take off.

DURING THE FLIGHT

Once the aircraft is airborne you will be released from your seat. You will perform your duties as discussed in the pre-flight brief and now its time to start work. The order of services varies from one airline to another, however this example is based on a typical charter flight as mentioned earlier.) Services offered on most charter airlines are charged for. This includes the sale of headsets for the in-flight entertainment, drinks and duty free goods. The meal is pre-ordered and paid for when the passenger booked.

Typical services which can be offered are the following:

1. Headsets for the in house entertainment
2. Drinks service
3. Meal service
4. Tea & Coffee
5. Cold towels offered to passengers to freshen up after their meal
6. Clearing & collecting the meal trays from the passenger
7. Duty free goods
8. Immigration cards
9. Preparing the cabin for landing.

During this time you must also remember to check the toilets every 20 minutes to make sure that they are clean and stocked up. Deal with a number of questions and queries and most importantly maintain the safety and comfort for all of the passengers.


LANDING TIME

You now take your seats for landing. Once landed you say goodbye to the passengers and then prepare the aircraft for its return journey back home to Gatwick. (This is referred to the turnaround). Duties to include are restocking the bars for the drinks service, restock and check the catering, restock all the toilets, take out any rubbish from the seat pockets and ensuring all passengers have reading literature i.e. airline magazine, safety card, in-flight sales brochure and a sick bag. Before your new passengers board you will have to complete a security check to ensure no one has left any suspecting packages on board as this is obviously taken very seriously. Last but not least check your appearance before the new passengers arrive. The passengers arrive so once again you have to greet them and assist where needed. When they are all seated its time to begin the same emergency briefing and cabin service all over again!

LANDING AND END OF FLIGHT CHECKS

Once you have landed back at your base airport and the passengers have disembarked, its time to go back to the brief room to count the money and to make sure that the amount of goods sold throughout the flight balances with the amount of cash you have taken. Once this has been done its time to check your file for any changes to your future flying programme and then you are free to go home. Congratulations you have completed a thirteen-hour day and you will feel like you have walked to your destination and back! GOODNIGHT!

That is about a typical life of air hostess, in a normal uneventfull flight. It is not often you have the emergency landings or oxygen dropping from the overhead compartment.