Becoming an international flight attendant is still the ultimate dream for many, not least in the Philippines, where thousands of hopefuls lined up to attend a recent cabin crew open day. The applicants lined up for an Emirates open day in Manila on April 8, 2024, the first time the airline has opened recruitment for cabin crew in the country after a 14-year hiring freeze. Video footage posted to a cabin crew recruitment Facebook group in the Philippines showed applicants from all over the country started to line up as early as 01:00 local time, even though screening hours were only from 07:00 ..read more

British startup carrier Global Airlines has posted a preview of the new uniform that its Airbus A380 cabin crew might wear when the carrier launches.   Posted initially by the company’s CEO, James Asquith, on February 27, 2024, the social media post and photo was then reshared by the Global Airlines main X (formally Twitter) account.   “SNEAK PEAK – Our @globalairlines – Cabin Crew uniforms continue to evolve as design work continues towards the finished product. These are not quite our final finished uniforms, but they are getting closer to it,” Asquith wrote.  SNEAK ..read more

Qatar Airways CEO Badr Mohammed Al Meer is continuing to fulfill his promise of heralding a new era at the airline after taking over the leadership role in November 2023. The Doha-based airline will now allow employees to post photographs of themselves wearing the company uniform on social media.  Under the 27-year reign of former Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker, employees caught posting photographs of themselves wearing the airline uniform on social media could be fired.  In 2015, an anonymous Qatar Airways employee told The Guardian: “People get sacked daily for many stupid reason ..read more

A former Singapore Airlines cabin crew member is suing the carrier after he allegedly slipped and fell on a grease patch while working on a flight from San Francisco, United States (US).   Durairaj Santiran, 36, claims that while carrying out his duties on September 5, 2019, aboard an Airbus A350 he fell, resulting in him suffering a slipped disc.  According to the new broadcaster CNA, Santiran appeared in court on February 13, 2024, in Singapore wearing a brace for support.   The former employee claims that Singapore Airlines failed to provide a safe working procedure ..read more

A passenger on a Southwest Airlines flight has been jailed in the United States (US) after he pushed a flight attendant during an altercation. Michael Goins, 35, from Spring Hill, Tennesse, was aboard a Southwest Airlines from Indianapolis that landed at Austin Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) on March 20, 2022. While the aircraft was waiting to be allocated a gate for deplaning, Goins shouted “several expletives” while speaking on his mobile phone. A fellow passenger with children felt offended by the bad language, to which Goins responded in an aggressive manner. An altercation ensued w ..read more

The Lufthansa Group is searching for 13,000 new recruits to join its team in 2024 despite already employing 95,000 people in more than 90 countries.  Lufthansa, which also operates Eurowings and Austrian Airlines, is hoping to find a wide range of professionals but has four job roles in particular need of new staff.   According to a statement from Lufthansa on January 15, 2024, colleagues for the cockpit and cabin are particularly sought after, as are technicians and those who work in IT.  “In an industry like ours, success stands and falls with those who give their best ev ..read more

India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has announced that it will increase the mandatory weekly rest period for flight crew from 36 hours to 48 hours. The aviation regulator also laid out reforms to create safer conditions by managing and reducing fatigue-related risks in the aviation industry.  India’s Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce that the administration will employ the Fatigue Risk Management S ystem (FRMS),  a data-driven approach to enhance monitoring of flight crew fatigue.  A bunch of much-awai ..read more

In an aviation first, Korean Air has entered the virtual world to create its latest inflight safety video that will be presented to passengers on flights before take-off.   The five-minute guide is set in a computer-generated space, with a friendly virtual cabin crew member running through safety instructions.   Korean Air said it hopes that the introduction of virtual humans in its safety video will appeal to all passengers and help ensure they are engaged during a vital part of the flight.   The inflight safety guide was produced by Metaverse Entertainment, whic ..read more

Two British Airways flight attendants have lost their lives while on duty in separate incidents, a tragedy that rocked the carrier as the year 2023 ended. The first steward was found dead on December 23, 2023 in a layover hotel in Newark after he failed to report for duty.  The steward’s scheduled flight from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) was subsequently canceled.  Passengers were rebooked on later flights, and the steward’s colleagues were flown back to London as passengers. The second male flight attendant died on a New Year’s Eve flig ..read more

When Japan Airlines flight JL 516 collided with a Coast Guard aircraft at Haneda Airport’s (HND) runway while landing on January 2, 2023,  the fiery explosion on impact appeared catastrophic and most likely fatal. The collision claimed five lives from the Japanese Coast Guard’s DHC-8-315Q, but all 367 passengers and 12 crew members of Japan Airlines’ Airbus A350 managed to evacuate safely. The miraculous evacuation from the burning A350 is being credited to the efficient crew, who, despite the chaotic and terrifying conditions, managed to evacuate all 379 people, including eight children ..read more