I've been flying on aa exclusively for the last several years, so I've never (consciously) noted other fa's uniforms. On Wed. 11/21/12, I was waiting, in T8 JFK, to board aa flt. 64, and at the next gate QATAR airlines had a departing flight. Besides the ages of their fa's being 50 years younger than aa's , something about their appearance (besides the subdued shade of their uniforms) stood out, it was the hats they wore--it made their general appearance exceptional.
Any other fters feel the same?
I've been flying on aa exclusively for the last several years, so I've never (consciously) noted other fa's uniforms. On Wed. 11/21/12, I was waiting, in T8 JFK, to board aa flt. 64, and at the next gate QATAR airlines had a departing flight. Besides the ages of their fa's being 50 years younger than aa's , something about their appearance (besides the subdued shade of their uniforms) stood out, it was the hats they wore--it made their general appearance exceptional.
Any other fters feel the same?
When at ORD, compare the JAL flight attendants to NRT to the AA flight attendants to NRT. Their appearances are also indicative of their service!
Realistically, for domestic FAs working 12 hour days with usually load factors in 90%+ range? How would you like to put a 12 hour day in the office and be told to look like a China Doll. I just get this vision of a FA reaching over to serve me and the hat falling off in my meal.
FA age (and AA) has been discussed seven ways to heaven here on FT so its pointless to go down that road. However, AA is hiring new FAs so yes you will might get to see some new fresh and young faces (although some of those might be AE veterans looking to move up to mainline.)
As a point of reference, B6 has found that some of its best hires were 2nd career employees, in some cases retiring early from another line of work.
Realistically, for domestic FAs working 12 hour days with usually load factors in 90%+ range? How would you like to put a 12 hour day in the office and be told to look like a China Doll. I just get this vision of a FA reaching over to serve me and the hat falling off in my meal.
If other airlines can manage to hire staff that are able to do such complicated tasks as wear a hat and serve customers why does AA seem to manage to get the ones that are limited to being able to sit on their seat and read books/magazines
If other airlines can manage to hire staff that are able to do such complicated tasks as wear a hat and serve customers why does AA seem to manage to get the ones that are limited to being able to sit on their seat and read books/magazines
Most of my encounters with FAs working premium cabins have not been of the I choose to ignore my paxs types. Sure, some FAs go out of their way more than others to serve particularly their premium/EXP paxs. And I've never noticed that it was age dependent. I seen some of the most senior FAs work their butts off, even in Y doing multiple beverage runs.
At the end of the day its not the FA looking like a Victoria Secrets or Calvin Klein underwear (male) model. Its their attention and dedication to the job. Now I will admit I've seen my share of frumpy looking FAs, both sexes and of all ages. And a hat on a frumpy looking FA is still just a frumpy looking FA wearing a hat.
I think most individuals in the transportation industry who still wear hats as part of a uniform do so for a safety purpose: visibility. Conductors on passenger trains, for example, wear their distinctive hats to be identifiable in the aisle from several cars away. I don't know if this is the logic in air travel, though.
