Funny post!!! I like it!

No, this particular F/A, in this particular incident, pretty much realized she was dropping the ball and not living up to her obligations as a F/A in the F cabin; and she turned around and the rest of the flight was fine.

I also don't think she found our request for "First Class" - not "faster", really: just "First Class" - service "annoying": there was no condescension on our part: just a sincere request from us for her to provide a level of service that we have become used to as elites on our airline; and no detectable hint of annoyance on her part afterwards, at all, really.

And as far as spitting in the food or dropping it on the floor and serving it.....I honestly don't think that Hawaiian Airlines crew who have qualified and are trained to work the First Class cabin need to do that......that's really a juvenile or hash-house antic, although you may think me naive and disagree with me.

Cheers!

I find that Virgin America's flight attendants and generally front line people are smiling, funny and very kind and generally like to go above and beyond and say things like Please and Thank you. The legacy airlines should outsource training for customer service people to VA. Seriously. When an airline has a lower satisfaction rating than the IRS, there's something wrong with that airline. It's the absence of the "We're all in this together" attitude. If the CEO of a firm I was working for was cutting my salary and benefits while he was banking huge bonuses, I'd quit in disgust. I'm surprised those people haven't walked.

From my experience writing to various airlines that has been a hit/miss thing.

We almost always sit in row one on a two-class plane and in the bulkhead row in biz (or first if we are lucky) on a three-class plane, and we almost always have really excellent service. It might be because we are in the front and get to know the FAs a little better, or it might be because we really make an effort to be nice to them, or maybe a little of both.

I can only remember once when I was a little annoyed. There was a non-rev FA flying in first and the two FAs serving first decided to spend the majority of the flight talking with their non-rev friend--one of them perched on the armrest of her seat. When I realised that I wasn't going to catch their eyes, I rang the call button to which one responded and then went back to the non-rev friend. After a couple of other passengers followed suit and rang their call buttons, they seemed to get the message and went back to work. The non-rev went up and sat in galley where she could talk with them as they went about their work. Everyone in first seemed relieved.

That experience, however, was a very rare exception to the consistentlly good service that we seem to get on all flight on all airlines--commuters or transoceanic.

Actually I have recently been most impressed with the FAs on the Horizon commuter flights SEA/PDX/SEA. They are particularly charming, efficient, and polite, and manage to do a full-plane service of snacks and free adult beverages (sometimes even with refills) on a flight that is less than an hour gate to gate. ^

This will surely set off some people patriot meter but I have had far better service all around on major non US carriers in regard to cabin service.

As much as I hate LHR and many things about flying BA the FAs are consistently the nicest and most professional I have ever dealt with...to the point I even tell them they need to give classes to US based FAs.

I don't think that any int'l travellers here are going to disagree with you. Do a quick Google search and you'll find that int'l carriers have a FAR higher satisfaction rate for J and F (hell, even Y) travel.

It's capitalism in action. People, and companies, get away whatever they can as long as you pay them for it.

After 1.5 million miles of travel in all classes on DL, AF, UA, AA, Swissair and just about everyone else...

I sit in my seat. I put on my headphones. I read a book or work on my computer. A FA comes by and brings me a beverage or a meal. My interaction with the crew is very limited.

I can't tell who is "poor" and who is "good". In the last 15 years, the only truly poor rating I would give a crew was on a SFO-NRT flight on UA in business class, where the crew never came around to give even water once the meal service was done -- something like 6 hours (I switched to DL soon after).

Once they took sex out of the skies who can blame the attendants?
 

I'm old enough to remember the stewardess in high heels and hat and gloves greeting you at the top of the stairs from the red carpet. Can you say "hello American DC-7C"?

Then came the jets and a sex revolution. Continental's "we really move our tails for you" or National's "come fly with us" or the best of the best, Southwest's gals in hot pants.

Then came the do gooders and freaks and banned sex except between cabin attendants and the change has evolved into today's service. Who can blame an attendant today for being a little rude. They have to put up with horrible hours, horrible pay, dirty planes and a traveling public that wants to pay Day's Inn rates but stay at a Starwood.

Give a guy a ticket today and he thinks he is the boss. It's hard for him to accept the fact that he is cattle. Be nice to the attendants and I've found they will always be nice to you, even in todays unfriendly skies.

Peanuts anyone?

SQ should give those lessons. Or failling that, At least Asiana. My mom flew coach with them and she got one of those little amenity kits with lotion, toothpaste, toothbrush, socks, an eye mask and all sorts of goodies. Unheard of in coach.

Yesterday, I flew F on NWA - an airline I usually don't fly. The FA was very professional and the service was exceptional. At the end of the flight when she picked up my glass, I thanked her for the wonderful service she provided that morning. She looked surprised, then told me how nice it was for me to say that and she really appreciated it. It was a few seconds out of my life with a sincere compliment for a hard working FA. Perhaps if more of us gave a little appreciation when we're given good or great service, they might be happier to do the job of not just being there for our safety, but for some good service too.

Can someone tell me what "good" service is exactly? I'm not being facetious, but would like to know what you all are expecting from an FA that you're not getting.

Their duties are pretty simple as I see it. Bring drink. Bring food. Take away food/drink containers. If on a long flight, repeat. Take coat at beginning of flight. Give coat at end of flight. It's really hard to get that stuff either really wrong or really right.

I so often hear about how awful flying is from non-frequent flyers. I ask well what is it specifically and they can never answer concretely. The public has been trained to instinctively expect flying to be a pain. The media puts gas on the fire with "AIRPORT DELAYS" flashing across the screen every 5 minutes and countless stories on lost luggage, even though 98% of luggage makes in to its destination on time. It's almost as if people are disappointed if something DOESN'T go wrong while traveling.

A lot of top notch airlines' cabin crews can certainly give lessons to them.

Oh, but wait....!
 

[QUOTE=My exact response was, "Why would we deal with them any differently than rich flight attendants?" :D[/QUOTE]

There ARE no such things as rich flight attendants!---

which is possibly why there IS such a thing as poor service from them.:rolleyes:

No excuse...and it disgusts me that anyone would defend unprofessional behavior in any field for any reason. If you don't like your conditions quit or change them but NEVER take it out on the customer.

Agreed, but it is difficult to find many "professionals" willing to work for minimum wage. When those that don't like it quit, you will only be seeing more minimum wage workers applying for the same job.:confused: