I was a stewardess – this is why I think that business class passengers are the worst

From international trip to discounts and hip uniforms, life as a stewardess may look pretty attractive.

But although it seems like they are leading high life, there is another side to a career as a cabin crew.

Jane Hawkes, a former stewardess, has lifted the lid about the reality of the work in an exclusive interview with MailOnline Travel. The consumer expert and blogger (ladyjaney.co.uk) also reveals why she found Business Class passengers the most demanding group of travelers.

“Everyone thinks it’s glamorous, right?” Jane says. “But the industry has changed a lot. It used to be silver service. Now you go off the aisle with a trash can, put everyone’s waste in it, pick up sick bags. ‘

And because the crew of the aircraft is not often able to clean a completely clean and demanding schedule, Jane says: ‘You are very aware of how disgusting the plane is. I never go anywhere without my antiseptic wipes. ‘

With antisocial behavior in the air on the rise, stewardesses are also often in the front line. Jane reveals: ‘I think people end up with different personalities and as different people [when they fly]. Something happens to people when they go through an airport, where small things become huge things.

‘Explode people. And to be able to harm such situations, it is quite difficult to be and you have to follow limitation training. I didn’t have it [to do it for real] But if someone is a disturbing passenger, you are within your right to control them. ‘

Crew is also trained to be able to cope with a whole series of emergency situations, but passengers often do not appreciate the challenges of the role, Jane adds.

Jane Hawkes, a former stewardess, has lifted the lid about the reality of the work in an exclusive interview with MailOnline Travel

“I think people see air teams and cabin crew as glorified waitresses in heaven,” she claims. ‘But it’s so much more than that, because you are a judge, jury, police and medicine. Strom operators are mainly for your safety.

“I think we should all remind us and listen to the crew because they may not get the same respect as when the captain came down to talk to someone.”

And no matter how surprising it sounds, they are Business Class passengers who get the red card for bad behavior from Jane.

She reveals: ‘Business passengers are sometimes the worst because many of them have paid companies for it. They just want everything, left, right and center. They want everything they can have from that experience. A bit like going to an all-inclusive and devouring everything.

‘First class passengers pay for a certain standard. They have privacy. They do not pay for the service, they pay for privacy. So they may not even eat anything.

“Then Economy passengers can be fun, because they sometimes go on an adventure, visit people and they have stories to tell.”

Although you may assume that flight attendants always fly with the same group, Jane explains that the crew of your plane may never have met before.

She says: ‘You often don’t know anyone. You get a briefing before you go on a flight and towards the end of the flight, you are almost bosom friends, believe it or not.

And no matter how surprising it sounds, they are Business Class passengers who get the red card for bad behavior of Jane (stock photo)

Although you may assume that flight attendants always fly with the same group, Jane explains that the crew of your plane may never have met before.

‘Once crew, always crew. You have to gel very quickly because you have to work as a team. ‘

And while the cabin crew is also confronted with early starts and long hours, they are long -term servants who have the most difficult deal, says Jane.

“I was a short hunger and I always say that short trek is a job, but long -term it is your lifestyle,” Jane explains. ‘Everything revolves around that long term because you go back with the jet.

‘And as the years progressed, the journeys have changed because you don’t get that much time in the route. Going from east to west is terrible. Your body clock is filled.

‘It is very different from the Glorie Days of Crew Jollies. People don’t have that much time. The hotels used to be better. Cutbacks have arrived. It can be lonely, you can only end up for a long time if there are no possibilities to meet other crew members.

“If a part of your fellow crew someone has taken someone on the trip (a” Clingon “staff trips) or they have family members or friends on the layover destination, they may not be able to stay in the hotel and other crew may have no one to eat with.”

But although life in the air may not be the glamorous lifestyle that people think it is, Jane reveals that there is one fantastic advantage.

‘Being crew means that you meet many lovely people around the world and make lifelong friends. There is no other job like this. ‘