Singapore Airlines - Inflight Duty Free sale question.

[707-338]

Hi all.

I am just wondering if someone knows the answer to this. On Singapore Airlines flights when the cabin crew sell the inflight duty free items, are they on any sort of commission for sales made or have to make any sort of sales quota?

Thank you in advance.

Cheers

[Metro man]

This is a common practice, and whilst I can't answer for SQ, it certainly applies im my company where commission makes up a noticable % of the cabin crews income.

How hard are they trying to sell ? Should give you the answer ;)

[707-338]

I was on a flight back from Singapore to Sydney on Wednesday night on the A380. The takeoff was approx 2100 local (midnight Sydney). They kept the cabin lights on full until 0015 Singapore time (0315 Sydney).

At 2330 I asked if they would be turning the lights down soon and they said they would after their duty free sales. I asked again just after midnight and they said they still needed to sell duty free. I told them that it wasn't good cabin management to have the priority on selling duty free at that time of the night over letting passengers get some sleep. I hope my food was safe to eat after that.

They turned the lights on again at 0530 Sydney time. A total of 2 hours and 15 minutes of dimmed lights out of a 7 hour night flight is just not good enough. Surely if they had to sell their duty free (who buys duty free in the air when you have so much choice in Singapore and again in Sydney?) they could have dimmed the lights to a better level. I thought the A380 was meant to have better light features (mood lighting)?

I will be sending a letter to Singapore airlines in the next few days detailing what happened and seeing if this was a case of a one off bad cabin manager or if it is their regular cabin procedure.

And I haven't even mentioned here the bad timing of the meal service on the flight or lack of customer service.

I can't praise Qantas cabin crews enough and after this experience I will be flying with Qantas whenever possible.

[drunkensailor]

Looks like a question for Capt. Lim
:)

[indamiddle]

yup, they are on commission. you will probably find BA crew will sell harder than QF as alphalink pay double commish to the pommies compared with the skippies

[parabellum]

707-338 - Were ear plugs and visors not available? No need for you to be disturbed at all.

[Seat62K]

Problem is, if they make announcements over the PA, ear plugs are little use. This is, for me, one of the most irritating features of modern-day air travel - the sell, sell, sell. I know it keeps ticket prices down, but I can't count the number of times I've been returning on a late evening short-haul flight to the UK and trying to get some "shut eye" only to be woken by announcements about scratch cards ("You, too, could be a millionaire...." - see, I've learnt it by heart!) or "discounted" Stansted Express train tickets which cost more than I've paid for my air ticket (no prize for guessing the carrier....).

[easy1]

Trouble is mate we have to do it, we don't like doing it, personally I would rather let you guys sleep than to run through with the rip off train tickets and the high quality items at a low, low price!

I've lived abroad for 18 years in africa, asia, middle east so I know what you mean you want to get on the plane and relax.

[707-338]

Unfortunately Singapore Airlines only include a pair of socks and a toothbrush in their little kit they hand you. No earplugs or visor. I can handle the fact that they want to sell duty free etc on the flight but what I found stupid was the timing and that they kept the lights on the full setting. The sale could have been done earlier in the flight or at the end but not at a time that most wanted sleep to prepare for their day in Sydney. I myself had to pickup a hire car and drive. There were passengers with small kids that were kept awake because selling duty free was more important than pax comfort.

I am actually more angrier now that I know they are working on a commission. Being a Cabin Supervisor (Loadmaster) on the recently retired RAAF 707's, I would have to tear the Crew Attendants a new behind if they had performed like the SA cabin crew did on this flight (and not just about the duty free).

Rant over. Next is my letter to Singapore Airlines.

Cheers and thanks for the responses.

[VAFFPAX]

*psst* There's the 'buy your own earplugs/headphones + eyeshades' option too you know.

S.

[707-338]

Yes thanks for the tip VAFFPAX, and yes it did occur to me but for a night flight I wasn't expecting the lights on full at that time of the night as I haven't experienced that on any other airline or flight.

If I fly Singapore Airlines again I will come prepared for full cabin lights on until 3am and bad service.

[VAFFPAX]

It's not a case of expecting or not expecting something like this, but a case of being prepared. I wear earplugs and my eyeshades regardless of whether the lights would be on or not all night. It gives me the assurance that I will sleep regardless of the atmospheric environment.

Granted, I think I'd have been a tad annoyed too, but then again, I've had similar experiences on flights from Europe to the US on carriers who treat their pax very very well. Except in their case it wasn't flogging on-board duty-free items, but rather just a very drawn-out service which left us with about an hour or two just to ourselves.

Just a suggestion from a frequent flier (although you clearly are one too).

S.