Making up one's own rules

[flapsforty]

Interesting question that!

I have never made up a rule as far as I can remember. What would be the point? There's more than enough of them as is.

What I have done quite a bit of over the years is bending company rules. When I feel that a passenger has had a rough deal at the hands of the company I represent, I will try my damnedest to in one way or other make up for that.
Be it small things like a bag of free booze to carry off the plane, an upgrade if the matter was more serious and once paying with my private credit card for a $200 cab ride for a pax. He and 300 others had been 24 hours delayed and treated quite horribly by the staff at the airport. He was on his way home because his wife had gone into premature labour and besides himself with worry. At the time we landed there was no transport available to the far away city where he lived and the assistance I had requested from the company wasn't there. So I told him to wait, walked him to the cab rank, made a deal with the driver and sent him on his way. Against all company procedure but the right thing to do.
Got the money back too after a bit of wrangling

Other reasons for breaking the rules is if it enhances safety. Example: Deportee being loaded at Rome by 2 carabinieri, evening b4 Xmas. Depu in question quite agitated, telling me he hadn't been alowed to smoke for 24 hours and he badly wanted a beer because he was suffering frm withdrawal. Depus can't drink alcohol and smoking is not allowed on board.
Fairly empty flight in front, busy at the back where he was supposed to sit, with 2 new and inexperienced FAs.
BIG trouble potential.
Had a quick heart to heart with the depu and made a deal with him. It was gamble 'cause he looked pretty rough, but I had the feeling that underneath the grime and the wild look, there was a 'man of honour' .
I offered him a cigarette to smoke in the galley before the other pax boarded plus a glass of beer to drink there and then.
I upgraded him to row 1 in the front so I could keep an eye on him, and in exchange I didn't want a sound out of him the entire trip.
Thus happened. He was so happy to go home for Xmas, and becalmed by the beer and the fag that he sat in his seat like a parish priest at a church outing.
Got a sh!tload of trouble for it from the captain after the flight, but it worked a dream, everybody was safe and happy and it was worth the earful.

Errmmm.......... got a few more examples but perhaps not....