I was 11 years old when I made my first inter-continental flight on Panam from Buenos Aires to New York Idlewild. It was pretty much like riding a grasshopper which stopped a thousand times along the way. I remember flying into La Paz and while walking to the terminal (they used to park the airplane miles away from the terminal then) in transit I saw some women on the side of the runway with their little kids and some livestock…just hanging out watching the planes and trying to sell some of their knitted stuff. I went over to pet a goat or a llama (can’t remember what it was) and stayed there while my mother watched me from afar. I was asked to get back with the passengers eventually and we continued with the pilgrimage up north. I also stopped in Havana and I remember my mother having a coffee at the airport and saying it was delicious. Little did I know that I need a fix of Cuban coffee daily! We must have made at least 6 stops.
The pilot flew over New York City and offered us a view of the Statue of Liberty while I tried very hard not to throw up! All those take offs and landings combined with the mountains of airline food that I consumed made my arrival at our destination rather shaky to say the least. Then I used to think that by the year 2000 we would all be flying our own planes. When I mentioned this to someone recently he remembered thinking the same thing although he asked me “well…would you like to fly your own ‘car-plane” to which I responded “no way!.” Its bad enough to deal with other drivers on land these days.
Since that momentous flight I have continued gathering flying hours and miles through the years. Pity that one couldn’t sign up for any frequent flyer miles in those early years of traveling cause now I would be flying free all the time! Living in all those different places in the world gave me the opportunity to do more flying than I ever thought possible. Few airlines are left in the world that I haven’t flown in at one time or another, from tiny little planes to the new humongous airbus which I flew to and from Singapore, not only this time but also at what I think was one of the inaugural flights 3 years ago – a beautiful and amazing machine that looks more like a hotel and than an aircraft - enormously comfortable and for those who feel confined by smaller aircraft, a roomier and less oppressing feeling.
If you've watched the TV series Panam and got a taste of the luxury that it meant to fly in those days and compare it to a regular flight these days, airline travel has certainly changed. One of the best and most positive changes is that more people are able to fly now than then and that is the most notable difference. The planes are larger and somewhat faster. The standards of service (or lack thereof) however, have declined to being nonexistant. Passengers feel like cattle because they are treated that way, they are not imagining anything that isn’t actually happening. I flew American from JFK to Miami, a short flight that I know so well that I could probably navigate it myself! Remember, I had just gotten off nearly 24 hours of flying on Singapore Airlines considered to be one of the best in the world to a tiny domestic flight which would bring me home. It was less pleasant than riding a bus. The flight attendants were tired and disheveled and in a very poor mood. The passengers looked like they were planning to end up at the beach on arrival, wearing cut off shorts, t-shirts and flip flops and carrying onboard what seemed to be all of their earthly belongings. As to “tiny domestic flight” in Asia I flew a couple of those on AirAsia, their budget airline. A great experience.
On American, the drink service was carried out with less charm, manners or grace than one is served a Big Mac, in fact, one can get better service at McDonald’s any day of the week! They charge for bags, for crummy earphones, for food and anything else they can put a price on. It used to be a relief to board a plane after check in, immigrations, lugging bags and the normal anxiety and excitement of travel. You left all that craziness behind and settled in for a pleasant and of course, faster journey than say, taking a Greyhound! Now we’ve added endless lines of “security” carried out by disgruntled TSA personnel to the list of things we do before we board the plane, we’re pointed to our seats (if we’re lucky) and we never see a flight attendant again until they throw a “complimentary” Coke at us while they chatter among themselves and ignore us. They lug around a black plastic trash bag to collect empty plastic that we need to dispose of while they talk among themselves and barely regard you as a person. One flight attendant dropped a napkin on the floor, saw it, left it and walked off while I was supposed to be making sure that my space was clean and tidy. Two other flight attendants passed by that little piece of paper smack in the middle of the aisle and ignored it. The plane looked like it had been struck by lightning when we disembarked and let’s not even discuss the bathrooms which were atrocious.
While I had just stepped out of the comfort and joy that Singapore Airlines crews bring to every single passenger onboard with their politeness, care and pride in their work and their planes, flying American yesterday was so different and insanely deficient as to merit my attention and in-flight musings for what would happen if the standards changed. If yes, they charged for what they needed to charge but did so with charm and respect for their passengers…that flight attendants would have seen fit to groom themselves to look professional and in charge and addressed you as guests rather an another pain in the butt passenger. Perhaps if one of the crew were to help that Mom with the three kids to get settled in her seat rather than bark at her that she was holding up the takeoff. That the flight attendant who dropped that piece of paper would have leaned down to pick it up and throw it in the trash. Maybe, just maybe, people would follow suit and not see fit to fly in their pj’s and clean up a little when they have to sit in close proximity to their fellow humans. One really doesn’t know what comes first here, the chicken or the egg. There’s no doubt that attitude begets attitude.
The title was “purser” or “hostess” in the past. Then we upgraded it to “flight attendant” and we thought we had progress in “liberation.” What we liberated them from was the responsibility and pride that one has “hosting” a gathering in one’s home. The house is clean and tidy, the food edible and hopefully tasty, the drinks served with care and the little extras that one does when a guest needs or wants something that we can provide. That was the original idea. They hosted their passengers. It was their home or plane that we were boarding and the feeling was different. The excitement that one naturally has when one starts a trip being business or pleasure is swiftly dispelled by their behavior, lack of humor and social graces which brings out the worst in us, the people, the passengers.
After nearly two days of flying Singapore Airlines and I do know the difference between international flights and domestic, with a short stopover in Frankfurt, the plane that I disembarked from was spotless. The bathrooms impeccable and most importantly, the crew looked fresh (granted, in Frankfurt we got a new crew) and professional in a warm and welcoming way. A new set of passengers could have boarded that plane back to Singapore without even cleaning that plane! No blankets or pillows on the floor, No newspapers strewn about and even the air was fresh and as pleasant as it can be on a plane after such a long flight. The tired passengers left with a smile on their faces expressing their thanks to the crew sincerely, definitely not faking it!
I did not feel the need to thank anyone on that flight to Miami yesterday. In fact, I think American owes me many thanks for even considering flying with them and submitting me to the whims and lack of energy of their crews. Oh by the way, we were held up for nearly an hour on the runway on arrival because they assigned our gate to another flight.
And I won’t bore you with the efficiency and beauty of Singapore’s Changhi Airport which is material for an essay of its own. I’m sure David, Alex, Steven and Tracy can help me with that one at some point. I would like to thank Changhi for making my entrances and exits from Singapore so pleasant and stressless. I enjoyed every second spent there.
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