Why do AA Flight Crews Travel with so much Luggage?
Mar 26, 2019, 9:37 am
#31
Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 1,285
closet would come at the expense of removing extra row of seats. Not sure if you are keeping up with project Oasis or not but Doug Parker will never do that. AA is adding more seats, also they don’t care about crew or passengers.
Mar 26, 2019, 12:52 pm
#32
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In some cases during IROPs, trips could be extended or they could be sent on (or volunteer for) a totally different flight to a location with a very different climate. I recall a TPAC Christmas Eve trip where my flight had a MX and the crew were going to time out, so the airline (not UA) sent the FAs who thought they were going (home) to MSP to HNL instead while the HNL cabin crew were moved to our flight, and ended up at MSP instead of HNL for Christmas.
Uniforms can get spills/stains and it would be nice to be able to change to something in order to maintain a professional appearance for work assignments.
Airlines forbid wearing uniforms during certain off duty periods (to/from airport and hotel breakfast before work is obviously OK) including whenever alcohol is being consumed. It's also common not to be allowed to smoke while wearing a FA uniform so that passengers don't smell the smoke when dinner is being served, and some FAs who still smoke would impose that standard on themselves as part of doing their jobs in a professional manner. This means that FAs must bring sufficient personal clothing on every trip.
Uniforms can get spills/stains and it would be nice to be able to change to something in order to maintain a professional appearance for work assignments.
Airlines forbid wearing uniforms during certain off duty periods (to/from airport and hotel breakfast before work is obviously OK) including whenever alcohol is being consumed. It's also common not to be allowed to smoke while wearing a FA uniform so that passengers don't smell the smoke when dinner is being served, and some FAs who still smoke would impose that standard on themselves as part of doing their jobs in a professional manner. This means that FAs must bring sufficient personal clothing on every trip.
That FA with a back and forth schedule (probably on a RJ, so unlikely to be a mainline schedule) might experience MX or WX IROPs and be required to stay overnight for rest and then work the replacement flight bringing the aircraft back the following day. He/she at least needs overnight stuff and a fresh uniform for the next day.
This is a pretty standard arrangement for FAs. It's baked into the value proposition for the job. If this wasn't an allowable arrangement, then the airlines would probably lose a nontrivial number of flight crew.
To be frank, this whole thread makes it pretty clear who those people are who sit down next to me, glare at the FA, and bark "Doublevodkatonicandhangmycoat" without so much as a salutation. I doubt the FAs enjoy dragging luggage around much more than you enjoy looking at their luggage (and apparently becoming deeply offended by it), so they must have a good reason for bringing what is needed to do their jobs.
To be frank, this whole thread makes it pretty clear who those people are who sit down next to me, glare at the FA, and bark "Doublevodkatonicandhangmycoat" without so much as a salutation. I doubt the FAs enjoy dragging luggage around much more than you enjoy looking at their luggage (and apparently becoming deeply offended by it), so they must have a good reason for bringing what is needed to do their jobs.
Mar 26, 2019, 1:09 pm
#33
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: West Palm Beach
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I say let them have more bags. Let them skip the lines in immigration and security. It's a fair trade for having to put up with us all day long...
Mar 26, 2019, 1:22 pm
#34
Join Date: Mar 2016
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Mar 26, 2019, 1:47 pm
#35
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I've seen paxs bring on everything from tuxes to wedding dresses asking to be hung. With front closets going away those items will get jammed up into the overhead bins (hopefully for the pax after the black tie event or wedding). Just becomes more and more like bus travel, actually worse when you consider how comfortable some bus seats are. I'd take a Megabus seat over an AA seat any day.
Mar 26, 2019, 1:49 pm
#36
Join Date: Nov 2003
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Anybody here that thinks FAs should be held to the same baggage standard as pax: I hope you realize how ludicrous you sound.
My partner is a commuter (based in one city, but lives with me in another city a significant distance away). He often spends 6-7 days away from home at a time. Checking a bag is his nemesis, but sometimes a necessity when he commutes due to the challenges of travelling standby/boarding last when there is no overhead space. With how often/how many flights FAs travel on (far more than even the MOST top tier members on here), the chances of baggage mishandling are astronomical, and FAs simply cannot take that risk.
If you are going to begrudge an FA/Pilot for carrying a few extra things just to be prepared to maintain a modicum of comfort while literally traveling nonstop for work, then I hope every one of your flights the next week has the pilot announce for FAs to stay seated and perform no service due to an anticipated bumpy ride 🤣
FYI, he travels with a rollerboard, an extra bag, and a lunchbox. Other crew members may travel with an additional purse, garment bag, etc. These extra personal items are contractually guaranteed. No FA travels with four roller bags (which is what some people are making it seem). But four items is definitely possible and allowed (as it should be!).
My partner is a commuter (based in one city, but lives with me in another city a significant distance away). He often spends 6-7 days away from home at a time. Checking a bag is his nemesis, but sometimes a necessity when he commutes due to the challenges of travelling standby/boarding last when there is no overhead space. With how often/how many flights FAs travel on (far more than even the MOST top tier members on here), the chances of baggage mishandling are astronomical, and FAs simply cannot take that risk.
If you are going to begrudge an FA/Pilot for carrying a few extra things just to be prepared to maintain a modicum of comfort while literally traveling nonstop for work, then I hope every one of your flights the next week has the pilot announce for FAs to stay seated and perform no service due to an anticipated bumpy ride 🤣
FYI, he travels with a rollerboard, an extra bag, and a lunchbox. Other crew members may travel with an additional purse, garment bag, etc. These extra personal items are contractually guaranteed. No FA travels with four roller bags (which is what some people are making it seem). But four items is definitely possible and allowed (as it should be!).
With all due respect, your partner has made the choice to live in one city and commute to work in another. When you do that, there are trade-offs (as I very well know).
I have no issue with crew bringing on extra bags. What I do have a problem with is what some others pointing out: you can be the first to board and the first one or two overheads in F are crammed full of crew bags...particularly on a RJ. I get that they need to travel with their bags but might i suggest:
1. Use the closets
2. Do what some airlines do and gate check the crew bags so they are not lost
The crew needs to remember that we are the customers and not an inconvenience. If they can't accept that, time to move on to an industry where they will not feel so put out by the customers. I know this is the minority of crew members who see it this way but they do a disservice to the many, many fine crew members on every airline.
Mar 26, 2019, 1:56 pm
#37
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Mar 26, 2019, 4:20 pm
#39
Join Date: Mar 2005
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To me it's not an issue of how many bags the flight crew carries. It's where they stow their bags. For all I care, they can board with 7 bags apiece as long as they stow them in the closet and other areas that are dedicated for the flight crew. It's when they stow all their bags in the first 3 rows of FC that they begin to impose upon the passengers.
Mar 26, 2019, 6:25 pm
#40
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To me it's not an issue of how many bags the flight crew carries. It's where they stow their bags. For all I care, they can board with 7 bags apiece as long as they stow them in the closet and other areas that are dedicated for the flight crew. It's when they stow all their bags in the first 3 rows of FC that they begin to impose upon the passengers.
Mar 26, 2019, 11:09 pm
#41
Join Date: Apr 2009
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Dougie's been a pro at removing closets for a long time. I remember the uproar when he removed them from many of the LUS planes after he came over from HP (apparently not understanding the bulk of winter coats in a northeast-route-heavy network at the time).
I say let them have more bags. Let them skip the lines in immigration and security. It's a fair trade for having to put up with us all day long...
I say let them have more bags. Let them skip the lines in immigration and security. It's a fair trade for having to put up with us all day long...
Mar 27, 2019, 10:31 am
#42
Join Date: May 2011
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP, LT Gold
Posts: 3,148
I don't get it, either. I go to Europe for 8 days with a B&R Baseline carry-on and a small B&R backpack. That includes my running shoes/gear, and space to bring some stuff home for the fam / gifts from people we work with in Europe.
Mar 27, 2019, 12:43 pm
#43
Join Date: Mar 2007
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Flight attendants obviously have the right to bring on whatever luggage they want, and I agree that the airlines should have some type of storage for crew bags so customers don't feel like they have to compete with the crew for bag space. It's bad enough competing with all the other passengers for overhead space now that checked luggage is not free for most passengers. I once saw a FA board an AA flight with 4 bags, stowing them in F overhead bins, then brusquely telling a woman who had two carry-ons and a large purse that she had to check one of her bags. I understand that she was just enforcing AA policy but the unmistakable message was that the FA's convenience was more important than a paying customer's. I have also checked rollaboards on an E-175 as I knew the overheads would be full and had the FA rudely take my wife's backpack and my messenger bag out of the overhead and shove them in our laps to make room for a late boarding passenger's bags.
Mar 27, 2019, 7:08 pm
#44
Join Date: May 2006
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Although I am no longer a flight attendant, many of my friends travel with a C-Pap sleep machine which fits in an individual carry on bag. Also, I would not expect this on a DFW-OGG/HNL flight but I have flown with a nursing mother who would travel with an extra bag to store her milk, albeit they would only do one or two day trips. Just my input.
Mar 27, 2019, 9:31 pm
#45
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: DCA/CLT/HKG
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Posts: 731
Is crew not checking bags a US-only thing?
All of my CX/SQ flights overseas the crew had checked in bags. In fact at JFK two weeks ago when I got off a CX flight from HKG there were groundstaff next to the carousel taking off every bag that had a crew tag on it.
On an unrelated note our flight was sharing the carousel with the AA BCN flight and I heard an AA BCN pax next to me mumble that the CX crew must “HATE their jobs and be so stressed out” because their uniforms made them look too formal.
All of my CX/SQ flights overseas the crew had checked in bags. In fact at JFK two weeks ago when I got off a CX flight from HKG there were groundstaff next to the carousel taking off every bag that had a crew tag on it.
On an unrelated note our flight was sharing the carousel with the AA BCN flight and I heard an AA BCN pax next to me mumble that the CX crew must “HATE their jobs and be so stressed out” because their uniforms made them look too formal.