EZYA319, you are asking for thoughts.
I remember one captain we had who didnīt want male FAs on the upperdeck because he didnīt want to be served by 'flaming poofters'. The guy was a bullying idiot in many other ways too, and in those days, people got away with that kind of discriminatory cr@p. But weīre talking 1983.
Over the past 20 years of flying, I have never heard any of our gay CC complain about homophobia @ work. Have heard the very occasional homophobic remark, but that was at least 20 years back. Have also seen straight pilots kiss all the female and gay male CC goodbye, while giving their straight colleagues, pilots and CC, a manly handshake.
Off the top of my head, I also know about a fair few pilots who are openly, non-issue, gay. We also had, now retired, a transsexual captain who flew as a bloke and lived as a woman down route.
These days, sexual orientation isnīt an issue among our crews.
I
have had occasion to pull up both gay and straight colleagues on overly sexualised and therefore bothersome behaviour. But thatīs a whole different kettle of fish.
Sadly, I
also have been on the receiving end of the Gay Mafia in action, not on board but in the office. I donīt care it itīs gays or straits; treating others with disdain because of their sexual orientation is just plain
wrong.
But where it is acceptable to state your objection to homophobia, objecting to gay mafia behaviour is fraught with pitfalls.
Canīt speak for other airlines, but in mine, itīs not homophobia that is the thorny issue.