Flightster

Crew Camaraderie

• by Bobby Laurie
• on October 8th, 2010
• 3 Comments

Airlines, like people, have reputations. Some of them are good and some of them are bad, but changing the reputation or even upholding the one already in place is tough.

Southwest Airlines is known for cheap fares, no fees, a lot of frequency and most of all, they’re known for their people. It’s said that Southwest Airlines employs among the friendliest people in the airline industry. Additionally, the airline is built on team work and both of those qualities can be noticed on just about every flight.

I commute to work on Southwest Airlines quite often and only once have I ever experienced a negative or rude employee. Their people are personable and hospitable. You can sometimes catch one their pilots mentioning “sit back, relax and enjoy the Southwest hospitality.” It’s true. Southwest is definitely something different.

On my commute flight home from this past week all three flight attendants passed through their sections multiple times on a short one hour and forty five minute flight to double check on their passengers in case they needed something else. They were doing more than they were required to and it showed. Everyone appreciated and respected them.

I’m writing this post from seat 22F on board a Southwest flight to Tampa. I felt so moved by what I just saw that it inspired this post and I had to write it, right now.

The photo at the top of this post is of a Southwest Airlines First Officer. Unfortunately, I didn’t catch his name. On my flight from Phoenix to San Antonio (where I connected onto this flight to Tampa) he sat next to me, in the window seat, commuting home. When I sat down, he noticed my airline I.D. and instantly engaged me in conversation by asking how I enjoyed working for my airline, why I was traveling, etc. He was being very friendly and he was a great conversationalist. Once the fasten seatbelt sign came off he asked me if I could let him out of our row, “of course” I responded.

About ten minutes later I noticed that this First Officer was making his way down the aisle passing out snacks. I was shocked. Here he was on a flight home after working for four days and he’s now volunteering to help the flight attendants complete service. Amazing. Not many pilots ever volunteer to help out in the cabin, which is why I was taken back. As he reached my row, he looked at me and smiled “would you like something?” I said “yes, the answer to this question: How many people asked if you if you’re the pilot working/flying this flight?” He grinned and said “Just one.. I told them it was on autopilot. They bought it.”

He came back to his seat just forty minutes prior to landing and finished reading his newspaper. I thought he did was extraordinary. It shows his true appreciation for his job, his co-workers and his company.

This situation reminds me of one I encountered on a flight a few months ago, also on Southwest, when I was commuting from San Francisco to Phoenix with a First Officer friend of mine, from my airline, Emett. The flight was full, jam packed, and after we got in the air a passenger become severely ill.

Unfortunately for the passenger, we were over the desert and the closest airport was Phoenix. So we continued on. The passenger took a turn for the worst just prior to landing in Phoenix. The flight attendants were pre-occupied (as they should be) with the passenger requiring assistance and couldn’t properly prepare the cabin for landing. Once I noticed the look of “what are we going to do?” on their faces.. I sprung into action. I asked the passenger on the aisle to let me out, he said “what? We’re landing soon! The seatbelt sign is on!” I said “don’t worry, I need to help.” Walked from my seat in row 19 all the way to the front to the one flight attendant not involved in the medical emergency (she was communicating with the flight deck) and simply said “hand me a pair of gloves and a trash bag.” I may work for a different airline, but the FAA regulations are the same. The least I could do is help them out while they helped out a fellow passenger. In my airlines uniform, I walked down the aisle picking up trash and making the cabin compliant. (By the way, only once person noticed I didn’t work for Southwest)

At the same time, Emett stood up from his seat and went over to the flight attendant at the front. He guarded the flight deck door and told the flight attendant that he could man her post while she assisted me with cabin preparation.

I didn’t think, I just did it. Why wouldn’t I help out? They were obviously in need of help.. And I was one of the only people on that plane who could. They didn’t ask for it, but they didn’t reject it either.

When we walked off the plane the flight attendants told the Captain what we did and he asked for our names so he could tell his company.. and pass the word on to my company. We didn’t tell him. We simply said.. “don’t worry about it, you’re welcome.”

Friendliness happens everyday in the air. You may not notice it, but it’s there, contrary to popular belief. I hope to bring you clips of the good stuff happening up there as I see it unfold. It doesn’t always occur between flight crews it occurs between everyone in the metal tube jetting through the sky.

Bobby Laurie

Bobby Laurie, author of the book Planely Speaking and television travel correspondent, currently works as a Flight Attendant at a low-cost airline and as a freelance journalist. After graduating from the Pennsylvania College of Technology with a degree in Mass Media Communication, Bobby combined his passion for both journalism and travel by writing about the travel industry through his insider knowledge and personal experiences. You can read Bobby's blog about being a flight attendant and the airline industry by visiting UpUpAndAGay.com.