It's not all it's cracked up to be!
I flew with the "World's Favourite" for 6.5 years on longhaul (WBA as it was, Worldwide as it became) and would like to dispell a few misconceptions. The job of cabin crew is far from being all it's cracked up to be, even on the golden wings of a BA 747!
My first few years were enjoyable, I did some amazing trips and the people were great. But I soon realised that cabin crew really were treated as and seen as uneducated and "the lowest of the low..." and the job was ultimately not how I had initially seen it through my naive, rosy specs.
I have vivid memories of being in the smelly never-cleaned bunks forcing myself to get some rest before getting up at 3am to either stack endless juice trays in the galley, serve a hot breakfast while feeling like death or even sick or do the trolley change over and push trolleys from one end of the plane to another in the pitch dark!
I remember sitting at Door 4L, shivering, eating my meal next to the crapper with passenger's hanging over you with 9+hours to go and having the same shallow conversion as every trip-
1. How long have you been flying?
2. Are you 1st or 2nd break?
3. What's your next trip? (Even before that one had even started!!)..etc, etc..
4. Do you always do Bar 4? etc, etc...
I remember the main meal service on a 747-100/200/400 in E zone (for BA guys!) which would take an eternity. I still have visions of millions of scummy passenger trays with spilt, cold coffee or every other American screaming, "Is that decaf?". I used to wreak of tea and coffee when I got to my hotel room or would have some indescribable stain on my designer (!) shirt.
How about scoffing down a breakfast in 2 seconds before getting off the aircraft or the smell of puke as the jumbo rocks like a boat while trying to smile sitting at Door 5L or 5R with a shi**y toilet smell next to you!!
Best of all collecting scabby headsets covered in sweaty ear wax before trying to jam them into those red bags...mmm...
So, I decided I had a bit of self respect and said goodbye to flying. No more beck and call...ding...ding.. ding.. I miss going to JFK, I miss the luxury hotels in India and I miss fatties in Singapore after a night out at China jump and most of all I miss some of the characters. As for the job though, never again!! I actually feel for the crew every time I fly...
I can still smell that eau de 747 that any BA 747 crew knows and that lingers on your uniform...