The Daily Observer London Desk: Reporter- Sarah Marshal
‘What’s the one thing passengers do that really burns your landing gears? Go!’
That’s the message that Jay Roberts, who has worked as senior cabin crew for Emirates, posted on his Facebook page – A Fly Guy’s Crew Network. And the answers came thick and fast from flight attendants around the world keen to air which passenger behaviours annoy them the most.
Are you guilty of any of them?
A much-repeated complaint was a lack of response from passengers when they’re greeted.
‘[I hate it when passengers] don’t respond to my hello when I’m welcoming them on the plane,’ said one crew member. Another doesn’t appreciate a lack of a thank you or a smile from passengers when they disembark.
Cabin crew from around the world aired their grievances about passenger habits to A Fly Guy’s Crew Network, run by former Emirates flight attendant Jay Roberts
Boarding while on the phone or while having a video chat, or having ‘headphones in when I’m trying to brief you or speak to you’, also goes down badly.
‘Besides being rude, it disrespects the crew’s role as safety professionals. If that plane is on fire and needs to be evacuated, I’m going to risk my life and stay behind to make sure you get off safely. Or if you get sick I’m going be by your side, doing everything I can to save your life, and you can’t even acknowledge I’m standing here saying hello to you?’
Another crew member is irked when passengers ‘insist on telling me their seat number during boarding’, another when they ‘queue to get off as soon as the plane has touched down’, while another contributing flight attendant can’t bear it when a passenger ‘opens the overhead bin during the flight to take out something and doesn’t close it’.
One crew member’s pet hate is ‘passengers watching you serve an entire cabin before deciding the best time to go to the toilet is when you reach them’.
‘I hate it when they tap or touch me to get my attention,’ said another.
Changing little ones on the seat ‘then handing me their bio-hazard diapers [nappies]’, is another sore point.
‘Talking to me while I’m eating,’ wrote one crew member in response to Mr Roberts’ question.
‘Walking with bare feet to the lavs,’ wrote another, with ‘stacking every single thing on their meal tray thinking they’re doing you a favour’ also makes the list.
Opening the overhead bin during the flight to take something out then not closing it doesn’t go down well with flight attendants
Finally, there’s this post: ‘Bringing a half-dead, blind-in-one-eye Chihuahua and slapping a “Service Dog” vest on it and looking at me like “I dare you to say something”.’
Jay Roberts is the editor and creator of A Fly Guy’s Crew Network, the ‘largest global network for aviation professionals’.
