I returned home from Los Angeles yesterday via Brisbane. Another tiring flight!Our rest period got cut due to the amount of turbulence we had disrupting our service. But the 2 and a bit hours of sleep that I did get were rock solid!
We had 2 nights in LA this trip and it was amazing the difference this had on the crew compared to my previous flight which we were rostered a 26hr layover. The crew was much more relaxed and upbeat, it even felt like the passengers were just as relaxed and chilled. Could the atmosphere from the crew really wash off onto the passengers?
A few of my friends and I hired a car and drove almost 2 hours to this amazing shopping outlet. On the way we drove past this very flashy looking Mercedes. Being girls, nobody blinked an eye. Then this SUV pulls up along side it. All of a sudden a man with a huge camera climbs out the window and starts filming the car. The man was so far out the window another person was holding him by the hips for safety! (???) We couldn't believe our eyes! Paparazzi sighting in LA!!! I'm not sure who was in the car but do know it was two men, one of which waved at us! It was quite a sight! The Mercedes teased the camera men for a few minutes then took off like a rocket! It was amazing, that car got so fast SO quickly!
Our new roster was published while we were away and with it comes new destinations. Fiji, Thailand and a new LA route via Melbourne. Which means that our rosters are now alot heavier than previous! Should be an interesting roster fatigue wise. I hope I can stay well rested! My previous roster was simply 2 X LA. This roster is the same plus 1 X Phuket, 2 X Fiji, and 2 Full days of training! I'm tired just typing that!
On route to LA from Sydney the Captain did a PA asking crew to be seated and as I sat down a champagne stopper popped off the bottle and nearly hit me in the face! Phew, scared the life out of me!
On route to Brisbane from LA we were travelling behind or close to the Qantas A380 on its way to Sydney or Melbourne. The wake it created was pretty rough. Cabin Crew had to be seated and the First Officer did a PA to the passengers explaining the reason for such bumps. The "Bloody Qantas" remarks from the passengers were hilarious!
On our return flight the captain spoke to the crew in the briefing explaining that he has had one cabin leader hit the roof due to turbulence and does not want that to happen again on his watch. I never thought of the Captain or the pilots as to how they would feel if turbulence was to injure people on their flight.
Years ago when I was working at McDonald's a manager explained to me that managers may have less to do but have more responsibility and the higher you go the more responsibility you obtain. And this true for that of the Captain. When I'm walking around the cabin and it gets bumpy, I don't worry as I know the pilots have it under control. But when I visit the flight deck It hits me...the buck stops here! All that control lies with the 4 pilots in the tiny little nose of the 75m aluminium tube. What a responsibility!!!
It's easy to get so blase faire about flying, but its important to remember that nature is so unpredictable and we should always have our wits about us.
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