While the days of draconian age and weight restrictions for airline flights attendants are a relic of the past in much of the world, some carriers still manage to offer some very attractive FAs.
I do not personally support specific age quotas, but I vehemently disagree with the statement made by some FAs (at least in America), that "we are primarily here for your safety." No. They’re not. While safety is an important part of the job description, it is only a small part of a day-to-day duty of a FA. I view FAs as airline ambassadors who ideally should bend over backwards to serve each passenger onboard, making them say at the end of each flight, "Wow. That went fast. What a great airline."
For better or for worse, carriers with attractive young FAs tend to get more acclaim than airlines with more mature crews. All this to say, a group of 1,000 frequent travelers surveyed by Business Insider recently voted on which airline they believed had the hottest cabin crews. Do you agree with the top-ten list below?
Pictures here.
Qatar is missing, in my humble opinion.
“I view FAs as airline ambassadors who ideally should bend over backwards to serve each passenger onboard” any chance to get them to bend forwards 😉
@Marc: That too! 😉
Surprised Asiana isn’t on the list. I’ve been on a few of their flights and they have nothing but young, tall, slender, attractive FA’s. I don’t think they could lift a 50 lb door panel if required but if that was required on your flight chances are grim you’ll make it out so give me one last look at an attractive FA before I go!
Unless you’re willing to shift your paid travel to airlines that provide this level of service / ambassadorship (which comes at a higher cost to airlines than what you get on most US airlines, and higher fares) this will remain a pipe dream.
Studies cited in the press show a negative revenue / profit impact to airlines charging just a $5 premium compared to competitors for casual travelers, and relatively inelastic demand for travelers beholden to a mileage / loyalty program. For most people, service is not a factor.
@AS: I am very happy with UA and have no desire to switch. Nevertheless, service should be good for the sake of itself–because these FAs love their job. Even when prices are the same, a passenger has to choose which carrier to fly. As someone who books tickets for people as a second job (see awardexperts.com), I cannot emphasize how often people are willing to add a connection or travel at a less convenient time in order to get on the carrier of their choice or avoid a carrier they do not like. Those high value travelers are the ones the airlines should be worried about, not the Kettles who buy whatever is cheapest.
How do you want to deal with this? Fire them as they get older? There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with an older (40s+) FA of EITHER sex helping me, as long as they are attentive…sometimes the BEST service you can get is on the UA HNL/OGG routes, and they are NOT young crews…its all in the attitude.
@Joelfreak: As I stated in my post and many times in the past on this blog, I do not support age quotas. As you stated, and I have stated before, my favorite FAs in the UA system are the older ones ex-HNL/OGG. And as you stated, it’s all in the attitude.
While my post was intended to attracts clicks more than provide a substantive commentary on the ageism, we are in full agreement that attitude is the only thing that matters. It so happens, though, that attitudes are quite good on the top ten airlines listed above.
Crapola! I do NOT fly to oogle at young women’s body parts – or those of young men as well. Selecting an airline is about getting me from A to B and back, on a shedule that works for me and with the fewest possible potential ‘issues.’ As long as the FA staff is clean and offers food/beverage service at the proper times, I don’t much care what they look like. Riding an airplane is not, repeat NOT suposed to be a 1970s Playboy fantasy at FL350. Of the Top Ten for which you offer images, I note that only one bothers to include a male FA. This only confirms my thought. Even through I usually fly BC “J” just to escape the unwashed masses, it is still about safe transportation. There are no 3-Star eateries in the sky and let’s stop pretending that their are. Move the bodies; don’t try to impress them. With the space and weight limits imposed on a little tube at 35,000 feet, and a server-to-‘guest’ ration of 1:50, even basic diner service is not expected. Just get me there and do not lose my bags. I apologize in advance, but I don’t care a twit about your tits, your hair, your legs of your makeup. Clean will do. Thank you.