Originally Posted by
mkjr
i was on a flight from YYZ-HKG and there were 4 FA's in plain cloths in J - rear J cabin and they pretty much chatted until take off (this was the 1:35 departure) and then pretty much ate and went to bed and then work out about 1 hour out and got changed into their uniforms and presumably started their day. probably dead heading. does this happen often?
yes. hard to say exactly the reason, but it is very common for CX to ferry FAs around for a variety of reasons. Could've been a tech issue on an earlier/later flight leading to crews being out of position or hitting crew hour issues, could've been a plethora of sick calls on one direction, could've just been a weird rostering quirk, etc. Hard to say precisely but it indeed is normal. By flying FAs as passengers for certain segments, it's a way to reposition staff without violating labor rules.