Since the invention of the commercial airplane, flight attendants have been downplayed and overlooked as pretty faces who serve. But they do much more behind the scenes, with half the credit they deserve. So what do they really do?
Flight attendant, Angela Brown, spoke on some of her responsibilities, ”We are safety professionals, so that is our main thing is making sure that everyone gets off this plane in 90 seconds if we have to evacuate, but we are also bartenders, we are nurses, we are moms, aunties, grandmas, EMTs, counselors, we wear lots of hats on this plane.” To qualify for the job, flight attendants must balance their many duties, all the while keeping a smiling face and welcoming demeanor.
Flight attendants must also endure verbal harassment from individuals who still see them as stewardesses. Sexism definitely still shows its head among the older generation. According to the New York Times, advertisements were shown on television in the 1960/70s marketing the attendants as young, skinny, and pretty “dolls” that were hired to appeal to male travelers.
Some airlines even restricted weight, marital status, pregnancy, and age, forcing attendants to retire as early as 32 years old. Even though these restrictions were outlawed in the ‘80s, over 70% of all flight attendants report experiencing sexual harassment of some kind.
Even with the difficulties, Angela Brown wouldn’t give up her position for anything. “I am living my dream job,” she says. Brown first fell in love with flying when she was 8 years old. Her dad was a frequent flyer on Alaska Airlines, and she often tagged along on his adventures. She decided that she would be a flight attendant when she grew up, so after becoming a mother and wife, she went back to the skies.
Brown’s memories with her father influenced her to return to Alaska Airlines, along with the fact that they consider the airline to be family, bringing her childhood memories full circle. “My dad was absolutely excited, elated, so happy, that I was basically working for a family airline, because it was so much of what he spent his life on.” Brown’s father unfortunately passed away last year, and being a flight attendant has given Brown the gift of being reminded of him every time she boards a flight. Brown was able to give her ‘Alaska Wings’ to her father as one final gift to him as a reminder of their fondest times together.
Even though it’s a difficult profession to be in, the experiences are worth the hardship. Being a flight attendant has given so much to so many people, allowing them to travel the world, and hear new stories everyday. The people I talked with said it is such a rewarding experience and they love going to work every single day. Brown says, “Alaska was our family growing up.”
Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/19/travel/flight-attendant-stewardess-sexism.html#:~:text=Decades%20ago%2C%20%E2%80%9Cstewardesses%E2%80%9D%20earned,not%2Dso%2Dgolden%20era.
