If you’ve ever spent your morning commute daydreaming about starting afresh with your career, this feature is for you. Each Monday, we speak to someone from a different profession to discover what it’s really like. This week we chat to international flight attendant Grace Hampson…
Our salary is organised into three parts… so it’s hard to give a typical salary. We’re paid a basic salary, flight pay and also per diems depending on where we are travelling to. [The Money team had a look at the average basic salary, and the National Careers Service says it starts at around £19,000 and goes up to £28,000 a year.]
We don’t have set working hours in a week… Flight time limitations are set by the Civil Aviation Authority. They allow us to fly 900 hours in a rolling year and no more than 100 hours in a rolling 28 days. We get 28 days of holiday a year.
The training is different for every airline… If you don’t already have one, you will need to obtain an attestation, which is a professional safety qualification all flight attendants need. That course can be done in a week. After that, you will need to be type-rated to a certain aircraft to learn the specifics on things like safety equipment and emergency drills. That’s where the training lengths can differ.
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The chance to explore is our greatest perk… Meeting diverse people and learning about different cultures is incredible. And I also love the flexible schedule that comes with long-haul flying.
One thing I wish passengers would stop doing is… asking if they can move seats as they are boarding. We are happy to accommodate and make passengers as comfortable as we possibly can during the flight, but we need all passengers to take their allocated seat for take-off. The weight and balance of the aircraft gets calculated, and that includes passengers as well as cargo and other factors. Correct weight distribution is essential for the aircraft to maintain stability and control. In short, the decision is out of the flight attendants’ hands!
A lot of people call us “waitresses in the sky”… and although part of our job is to provide excellent service, the most important thing is that we keep our passengers safe. We can deal with a large number of emergencies that have the possibility of emerging in the air, with fewer resources than you would have on the ground. It’s a great responsibility, which each flight attendant has worked hard at during their career.
Every airline probably has their own version of a secret language… However, the most common secret language we use is signalling to each other throughout the cabin when we need a top-up of tea, or another serving of chicken.
In my eyes, the best time to travel is… first thing in the morning. The travel to the airport is usually easier, and early flights tend to be less expensive. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are normally the best days for cheaper flights.
My favourite airport is… Los Angeles International Airport. This may be an unpopular opinion as it holds a reputation for being crowded. Not only does it have a great shopping and dining experience, but it also has the most flights to and from other airports, meaning you can connect to some amazing places.
We follow a very strict policy when it comes to the service of alcohol on board… especially flying such a long distance. We always monitor to make sure people aren’t overdoing it. We also make sure that we are looking out for people’s well-being at the boarding door when it comes to alcohol consumption.
An ongoing issue with aviation is always environmental pressures… and keeping carbon footprint low where possible. Modernising fleets and using aircraft such as the 787 Dreamliner can contribute to an improvement as they are known for their fuel efficiency and lower emissions in comparison to older aircraft. The introduction of sustainable aviation fuel is going to make a great difference when it is made commercially viable to use.
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My top packing tip is… rolling clothes instead of folding them. Somehow this creates more room and I can get more in. When I’m packing for a trip, I try to keep my outfits in similar colour palettes so I can rewear a pair of trousers or a cardigan and mix and match things I have bought with me.
Something surprising that people might not know is… We don’t just turn the aircraft round and come home. Many passengers ask if we are going to be flying the aircraft straight home after a long-haul flight. Due to required rest, we tend to stay in a destination for a night or two before working the flight back. Another crew will be waiting at the destination for us to arrive and to take over the aircraft. They will then work the return flight.
I have never nearly been in an accident… Aviation continues to be one of the safest forms of travel. Even before I was flying for a job, my dad was a pilot and I travelled with him a lot. In total, I’ve had 36 years (both as a passenger and a flight attendant) without so much as a near-miss.
People trying to join the mile high club aren’t a total myth but… it doesn’t happen often like people think. Increased security and regular cabin patrolling make it near on impossible.
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Turbulence doesn’t frighten me at all… During turbulence, we are regularly doing safety checks in the cabin. We are making sure passengers are continuing to wear their seatbelts and of course checking in on their general wellbeing. We move through the cabin calmly and unpanicked, which I think helps passengers to see. We are also happy to explain turbulence to our passengers and why it happens. I recently started a series of FAQs for pilots on my TikTok channel, which features my dad, a retired pilot. We talk about turbulence among other topics and followers have said it has really helped them.
I try to play it cool when passengers clap as the plane lands, but… but deep down, I love it. We fly with some talented pilots and they deserve the applause for getting us all there safely.
