Ever ask purser to turn down the heat in intl F cabin?
Nov 25, 2007, 12:44 am
#32
Join Date: Sep 2006
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You are not kidding! They always are complaining about a draft on the 777 and sit in their seats with blankets up to their necks and things wrapped around their heads (often pillow cases) - all this while other passengers are begging us to turn down the heat. But you are right, they definitely keep everything warmer over there - during the summer I am on the verge of heatstroke nearly everywhere I go, ESPECIALLY in that FRA airport. Boiling hot.
Nov 25, 2007, 2:05 am
#33
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Yes, Please ask. Working crew are warm because, well ... they are working and may not feel cold. Also, warm or cold depends on body fat and age. Ever notice it is usually those who are overweight that want the cabin cold and those who are thin want it warmer? And for those of us who have our own "personal summer", we ask others how they feel because we don't know!
Last edited by fly747first; Nov 27, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Nov 25, 2007, 4:22 am
#34
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Hotlanta.
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I love stereotypes! LOL.
I've always wondered why LH planes felt warm and blamed the lack of vents. Always thought it was due to LH being cheap. I spoke at a conference in Germany a couple years ago in the wintertime and the hotel room as well as conference room were unbearably hot, but I thought it was simply due to the fact that seeing how I was from SEA and spent a lot of time in the outdoors, my natural set point was just real low.
The energy conservation thing among the Germans is also funny in a stereotypical way. I was amazed how many of them sit in dark homes with only 1 fluorescent bulb on in the family room. I found it very depressing.
I've always wondered why LH planes felt warm and blamed the lack of vents. Always thought it was due to LH being cheap. I spoke at a conference in Germany a couple years ago in the wintertime and the hotel room as well as conference room were unbearably hot, but I thought it was simply due to the fact that seeing how I was from SEA and spent a lot of time in the outdoors, my natural set point was just real low.
The energy conservation thing among the Germans is also funny in a stereotypical way. I was amazed how many of them sit in dark homes with only 1 fluorescent bulb on in the family room. I found it very depressing.
Nov 25, 2007, 11:42 am
#35
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 6,967
I love stereotypes! LOL.
I've always wondered why LH planes felt warm and blamed the lack of vents. Always thought it was due to LH being cheap. I spoke at a conference in Germany a couple years ago in the wintertime and the hotel room as well as conference room were unbearably hot, but I thought it was simply due to the fact that seeing how I was from SEA and spent a lot of time in the outdoors, my natural set point was just real low.
The energy conservation thing among the Germans is also funny in a stereotypical way. I was amazed how many of them sit in dark homes with only 1 fluorescent bulb on in the family room. I found it very depressing.
I've always wondered why LH planes felt warm and blamed the lack of vents. Always thought it was due to LH being cheap. I spoke at a conference in Germany a couple years ago in the wintertime and the hotel room as well as conference room were unbearably hot, but I thought it was simply due to the fact that seeing how I was from SEA and spent a lot of time in the outdoors, my natural set point was just real low.
The energy conservation thing among the Germans is also funny in a stereotypical way. I was amazed how many of them sit in dark homes with only 1 fluorescent bulb on in the family room. I found it very depressing.
I am apparently an abnormal German. All my life I have suffered black looks for opening windows on trains and in cars. (My aunt has a deadly fear of drafts, along with most in her generation)I was just on three weeks vacation and the average outside temp was anywhere from 3 to 11 degrees (I believe that 11 degrees is 52 Fahrenheit). In Germany I slept with my balcony door tipped open every night. In France, I melted, as usual. I was wearing a short sleeved cotton shirt under my jacket every day and the heat was unbearable in the metro, in shops, etc.
and YET I saw on another travel discussion board that British tourists were planning on bringing their wool
underwear to Paris that week when it was 52 degrees. No amount of logic on my part would convince them otherwise.So I suppose that we all have different body thermostats, influenced by our surroundings.
Personally, one of the very first things I do after boarding an aircraft is to open the vent all the way, and I really miss those vents on LH C longhaul!
On a side note, I went through FRA several times in the last few weeks and found it less stuffy and warm than usual. Not sure why, but it was a welcome change.
Nov 25, 2007, 12:37 pm
#36
Join Date: Jan 2007
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Hot Topic
I am new to this forum as a writer, but I will try to give you all the info I have on heat/cold control on the 747. When you are on the ground, the FA's have no control over the temp and the pilots don't have a great deal either. Ground cooling/heating is delivered form the aircraft's APU (auxillary power unit). the APU will deliver good cooling to the front of the AC and not-so-good to the rear, which is why when you board sometimes FC is freezing in order that we can get some cooling to Y class. If the APU is not working, then if available, an external cooling cart is hooked up. It works OK, in my experience not as good as the APU, but better than nothing. If neither are working/available, then you roast on boarding.
OK, now we are in the air. If we had normal temps on boarding, once airborne we can control the inflight temp. The cockpit sets their temp and we can go + or - 10 degrees from the cockpit temp. (ie if they are at 75, we can go from 65-85). Assuming everything works OK, we are zoned for UD, FC, BC forward, BC aft, D and E in Y class. Each zone can be adjusted ... the more bodies putting out heat, the more we need to cool. GalleyGal is correct that the controls are not the most reliable. Sometimes we set the temp at 74 and come back a few minutes later to find it has climed into the 80's. Also correct, sometimes it is set at 77 and you are freezing. Most of the time the controls work fine, but air return ducts need cleaning, and temp sensors sometimes need replacing.
If you had a hot aircraft on boarding, such as in Sydney summer, then the cargo pit, aircraft "attic", air ducts etc will be full of hot air. Once airborne it can take some time to cool the AC, especially in Y class. If this happens, ask the Purser to talk to the cockpit. They can reset their temp allowing us to call for even lower temps (ie if they are set at 72, then we can go 62-82). Also, fuel permitting, the cockpit can put the gasper vents on high flow for a short period of time, and thus help to bring the AC temp down, especially in Y class.
There are some anomolies too ... if you are by a door, a window, or galley (BC 22-24) you will be cooler. Rows 32-34 in Y class are tied to the BC aft zone. If we freeze BC 22-26, it is comfortable in Y 32-34. If BC 22-26 is comfortable, then Y 32-34 is hot. Also, if the sun beats on the AC, just like your house, it is harder to cool, especially if it was warm to start.
And, for heaven sakes, as GalleyGal said, there is no ploy to keep it hot or cold to make you sleepy. We want the cabin to be comfortable for you so you can work, sleep, or just enjoy a movie in comfort. Hope to see you on my Sydney flights.
Cheers!!
OK, now we are in the air. If we had normal temps on boarding, once airborne we can control the inflight temp. The cockpit sets their temp and we can go + or - 10 degrees from the cockpit temp. (ie if they are at 75, we can go from 65-85). Assuming everything works OK, we are zoned for UD, FC, BC forward, BC aft, D and E in Y class. Each zone can be adjusted ... the more bodies putting out heat, the more we need to cool. GalleyGal is correct that the controls are not the most reliable. Sometimes we set the temp at 74 and come back a few minutes later to find it has climed into the 80's. Also correct, sometimes it is set at 77 and you are freezing. Most of the time the controls work fine, but air return ducts need cleaning, and temp sensors sometimes need replacing.
If you had a hot aircraft on boarding, such as in Sydney summer, then the cargo pit, aircraft "attic", air ducts etc will be full of hot air. Once airborne it can take some time to cool the AC, especially in Y class. If this happens, ask the Purser to talk to the cockpit. They can reset their temp allowing us to call for even lower temps (ie if they are set at 72, then we can go 62-82). Also, fuel permitting, the cockpit can put the gasper vents on high flow for a short period of time, and thus help to bring the AC temp down, especially in Y class.
There are some anomolies too ... if you are by a door, a window, or galley (BC 22-24) you will be cooler. Rows 32-34 in Y class are tied to the BC aft zone. If we freeze BC 22-26, it is comfortable in Y 32-34. If BC 22-26 is comfortable, then Y 32-34 is hot. Also, if the sun beats on the AC, just like your house, it is harder to cool, especially if it was warm to start.
And, for heaven sakes, as GalleyGal said, there is no ploy to keep it hot or cold to make you sleepy. We want the cabin to be comfortable for you so you can work, sleep, or just enjoy a movie in comfort. Hope to see you on my Sydney flights.
Cheers!!
Nov 25, 2007, 4:53 pm
#37
Join Date: Nov 2006
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Thanks pharmstew!! Glad to have you here and posting!
Nov 25, 2007, 6:10 pm
#38
Join Date: Dec 2003
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Wow--I find this shocking. I've only been in SQ FC a handful of times but have always found the cabin to be delightfully cool, if not cold. I actually find it better for sleeping because it makes me want to curl up and hibernate under the wonderful covers. It's the best in-flight sleep I've ever had and why I'll continue to try to get into SQ FC. Man oh man would I be disappointed and bitter to find myself in a warm (say nothing of hot) cabin.
Nov 25, 2007, 7:41 pm
#39
Join Date: Jun 2006
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There are some anomolies too ... if you are by a door, a window, or galley (BC 22-24) you will be cooler. Rows 32-34 in Y class are tied to the BC aft zone. If we freeze BC 22-26, it is comfortable in Y 32-34. If BC 22-26 is comfortable, then Y 32-34 is hot. Also, if the sun beats on the AC, just like your house, it is harder to cool, especially if it was warm to start.
Nov 25, 2007, 9:46 pm
#40
Join Date: Feb 2001
Posts: 1,724
Wow--I find this shocking. I've only been in SQ FC a handful of times but have always found the cabin to be delightfully cool, if not cold. I actually find it better for sleeping because it makes me want to curl up and hibernate under the wonderful covers. It's the best in-flight sleep I've ever had and why I'll continue to try to get into SQ FC. Man oh man would I be disappointed and bitter to find myself in a warm (say nothing of hot) cabin.