Originally Posted by Doppy
See, I wouldn't have gotten this far. The reasonable situation, to me, would have gone like this:
Hysterical FA: "Marshal! Marshal! There was a passenger who wanted to thank the FAs and give us a token of his appreciation!!?!?!!?"
FAM: "I think that's the tops! Have a nice day."
HFA: "OMG, but he was asking about crew staffing levels!?! Go arrest him! Aaaaahhhhhh!!"
FAM: "Well, I'd assume that if a passenger were wishing to give a gift, he'd have to know how many FAs were onboard. Anyway, minimum staffing levels are public knowledge and anyone who flies regularly would be able to guess the number of crew +/- one, so I don't see the problem. Take care."
You assume that the FA was hysterical and that she reported that the passenger wanted the information so that he could give a gift. Neither fact is in evidence. Given the rather narrow focus of the FAMs' duties, I would expect that they would act on just about any flight crew member's report of unusual activity.
The number of forum members that are advocating that people refuse to answer any questions from FAMs or other law enforcement personnel, lest they provide incriminating information, really makes me wonder. Do all of you have such guilty consciences that you're afraid at every moment that you're going to give yourself up? Have you been stopped, interrogated, and slapped into jail on the basis of something that you said carelessly? Does this sort of thing happen to you a lot? I've had hundreds, probably thousands, of conversations with law enforcement personnel at all levels, both as a colleague and as a private citizen, and not one of these has resulted in my arrest. I have to wonder what the rest of you have been up to for you to maintain this level of paranoia.