Now in defense of Garfield.........if it was all about looks and body size i would like to think i know him well enough to safely say he would prefer the now defunct Hooters Air.
but I do know him very well and he does not look at women in that way (wow i think that came out wrong)...what I meant to say is I dont think he likes women in that way (now I know that came out wrong)....ok I got it....he was just saying He thinks the Asian carriers are very professional. Nothing to do with their body size and age.
Now do they really have age and weight restrictions on those carriers?
I have to step in here. I fly to China A LOT. Half my family is in Shanghai, so I guess I can speak with a modest degree of experience. Yes, many of the Asian carriers have age and weight restrictions for the cabin attendants. Once you hit a certain age, you are offered the door or, if you're lucky, a ground position.
Also, nobody can deny the fact that the Asian carriers DO offer superior service. Everyone who flies knows this. Most, if not all, of the Asian carriers are heavily subsidized by the governments, so they don't have pesky issues of meal shortages, filthy airplanes, dilapidated carpets and sidewall panels secured with duct tape, etc. The Asian flight attendants have a lot less "hassle" to deal with on a material and practical level.
Now, if some AA flight attendants come off as a bit curt, it "may" because they are flying 14 hour days without food and getting 9:45 of "rest" on their layovers. As a scheduler, Garfield KNOWS that this type of trip is very, very common. Plus, flight attendants at AA are constantly having to say "I'm sorry" for the lack of service and amenities offered in flight. When passengers hear "I'm sorry" for the fifth time on one flight, the words no longer console, they irritate.
I don't want to rehash the woes of the Restructuring "Agreement," but the simple reality of the fact is that any human will lose his/her charm and "fresh" appearance after 4 legs and 14 hours of duty aloft. Also, the fact that we are constantly having to apologize for inconveniences that result from the bean counters' draconian cuts gets tiring not only for the passengers, but for us as well. EXAMPLE: On my flight from Paris to Miami last week, we were short drinking cups. The agents in Paris could not obtain any for us, so we embarked on a 9:45 flight with exactly 250 cups to serve 186 passengers. Keep in mind we are supposed to offer FIVE beverage services during that flight. You can do the math. So, we had to ask our passengers to "Please keep the drinking cups for the entire flight." (Now that's klassy with a 'k'). We also received none of the 5 special meals ordered. Now, no matter how friendly we were, those passengers undoubtedly got off that plane and thought, "That flight really sucked!"
So, after a long digression, I return to the point of the post. Yes, Asian carriers have gorgeous and svelte and compliant air "stewardesses." We know that! When my crew and I were leaving the Paris hotel the other day to return to the airport, we commented on the fact that an arriving Thai crew looked lovely even after a 13 hour flight. We acknowledge the fact that we are no longer a work group comprised of twenty-five year olds, but I will insist that the vast majority of my colleagues are extremely pleasant and do their best in adverse conditions (i.e., 250 cups to serve 186 passengers during 5 services). Of course there are a few bad eggs, just as there are in every department.
So, in response to Garfield's comment, I think everyone knows he is correct about the fact that Asian cabin crews look great and offer superior service. I would simply ask that he think beyond the surface appearance of things in order to better understand some of the challenges we face as opposed to our counterparts at JAL, Cathay, or Thai. Also, the issue of staffing is not to be overlooked. I do not have the statistics, but I would bet my mid-month check that the Asian carriers probably staff their flights with a ratio of approximately one cabin flight attendant to every 30 passengers, whereas AA staffs its flights with one cabin flight attendant to every 50 passengers.
Just my two cents' worth.
Peace,
Art Tang
IMA
