Happy New Year!

It's the first day of 2010 & as I sit here waiting for my breakfast I thought I'd type a quick post to wish you all a great new year. I had intended to post last night before I went out but our cocktail hour got started a bit early so it didn't happen.

2009 has been an interesting year, that's for sure! It didn't start out so well, with the loss of JournalSpace and four years of my blog, but the need to move on and start again meant that I had the chance to make new friends through a new blog & site.

In Case of Emergency started out as a blog to chronicle my journey through airline recruitment and has become a window into the world of my fellow crew and passengers alike. I enjoy writing and connecting with you all and the support everyone has given me through comments, emails and new friendships has been fantastic! I've even made 'real-world' friends and hope to do more of that in 2010.

With new beginnings in mind, I've come up with some resolutions for a few different aspects of my life. Most of them are changes I aim to make, rather than specific numbers or things to do, but regarding my blog I've come up with some more measurable goals which 'd like to achieve.

TT's Blogging Goals for 2010

1) Be more committed to updating & maintaining my blog, being more professional & less "hobby" about it.

2) Work more on my writing & content. The tie in with Ciao Bella Travel has been a really fun experience for me and I hope to build on it and other similar things in 2010.

3) Get serious about my plans for a business related to my blogging. Sit down and come up with definite plans I can do to make this work alongside my job.

4) Build on the relationships & friendships I've made through my blog and Twitter.

5) Enjoy what I do!!! :)

Hope you all had a great New Year's Eve, wherever you were, and I wish you a happy, healthy & fantastic year ahead for 2010 :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Ask the FA: Changing Seats Onboard- Is It OK?

Q) On an international flight, what are the rules about changing seats? I have seen some people run for empty seats as soon as the plane door has closed, stretch out over three and be asleep before the plane has left the ground (may have been my children). Is this okay? Leonie

A) Dear Leonie, Long-haul flights can be such a drag, can't they? One of the most tempting sights to see on a crowded flight is a row of empty seats - a whole row! Changing seats is usually fine, but there are ways to go about it.

If your flight is really empty, it's better to keep your assigned seat until after take-off. Some airlines might even make an announcement asking passengers to do this. On a very empty flight, lots of passengers moving around can affect the balance of the aircraft, and while it likely won't fall out of the sky, it can make a difference to the pilots' information like fuel and takeoff speeds. They like to know just where everyone is sitting for takeoff, so if your flight is quite deserted, wait until after take-off before you move.

'But someone else might beat me to those seats!', you're thinking. They might! But the smart traveller will use personal items (like books, blankets or a small, non-valuable bag) to mark those seats as 'taken'. I'd only suggest this if lots of people are circling and eyeing off those seats, though. And it's always nice (not to mention polite) to ask the crew if it's ok if you 'save' seats for later. That way you can keep your seat for take-off, but still have some space after the seatbelt sign is switched off. Of course, be sure to only reserve seats you acctually need, and consider that others might also want a bit of space.

If in doubt, it's always best to ask your crew, as different airlines and even countries have different rules. Another factor to consider is if you have ordered special meals. If you do move, be sure to let the crew know as soon as possible, so they can record your new seat number next to your ordered meal. Sometimes we crew have those seats in mind to move people to for various reasons, for example, separated families, a bereaved person who needs some space, or other such circumstances. We do appreciate passengers doing the polite thing, and asking, because we hate to send you back to 'middle seat' hell! So by all means, if you see empty seats, it doesn't hurt to ask.

Just a note- if travelling with kids, remember that they'll need to be sitting upright again for landing, and ALWAYS put a seatbelt on them when they're asleep. Happy travels, and enjoy the extra space!

(NOTE: Due to new extra security measures introduced on certain flights over the past few days, I would advise asking the crew at all times before moving around in the aircraft, to avoid any misunderstandings or breaking of new rules. As always, if in doubt- ask!)

While we're on the subject of changing seats, I'd like to hear about your experiences. Have you had a good or bad response to wanting to change seats? Do you have a 'sure-fire' way to snag that plum seat before everyone else? Tell me about your flights!

Next time: Questions about special-order meals

(Photo: Ryan Lemos on Flickr)

Merry Everything!

Hello all!

It's been awhile since my last blog post, all I can say is that real life got in the way a little, and combined with the festive season, plus a busy flight schedule, it meant little time for blogging. And then when I wanted to blog, I just couldn't find the words, severe "blogger's block" for sure!

I've got a few days off soon, so planning to get some posts done then, I've had some great flights lately and even better, great crew! Have totally been winning that lottery for having friendly, easygoing people to fly with- always an awesome thing in my book!

I hope all of you had a great Christmas, whether you spent it flying, with family or doing other things. And I wish you all the best for the New Year and a happy & safe 2010- with many more stories to come!

And Baby Makes Fee...

With all the extra fees being added on to airline tickets these days, it seems that everyone is looking to get the best deal. (Aside from the fact that booking a lo-co ticket is always going to mean 'add-on' fees)

One area where this seems to be the case is parents travelling with babies. I was researching other subjects but came across some information which prompted me to write this post.

It seems that some parents are reluctant to cough up the extra cash to buy another seat and bring a baby seat on the plane with them. With airfares getting cheaper and cheaper, I just don't understand this. It's like saying, the baby seat weighs more so the car uses more petrol, let's not bother with that today'. If you wouldn't take your baby in the car unrestrained, then you definitely shouldn't be flying with it unrestrained, either.

In Australia, the laws require lap-held children up to the age of 2 years to make use of the infant seat belt. Parents may also take the option of buying another seat for a car seat for the child. There are certain devices out there, designed by US companies, for use in the United States, that can be used for older childen, or in once case used by babies as well. The thing to remember with these gadgets is, they may not be approved for use in countries outside of the US. For example, the Baby B'Air would not be allowed on Australian carriers, because the law mandates use of the infant seat belt. It doesn't matter that you prefer your own device, or that 'I can hold onto my baby'- the law says the seatbelt must be used, and baby could be on the ceiling before you even know there is turbulence! So it pays to check where your device can and can't be used.

(For the record, the CARES child restraint harness can be used on most Australian carriers)

Here's a few other "travel don'ts" when you're in the air with kids:

1. DON'T expect flight crew to babysit, clean up after or otherwise provide for your children. Most of the time, we're happy to help, but as a parent, your child is your responsibility. Have extra snacks on hand, just in case your child doesn't like the airline food. Bring plenty of milk or formula if that is what they drink- we have limited milk supplies and usually no formula on board and delays do happen.

I remember being extrememly disgusted with one father when he was more interested in finishing his Jack & Coke than cleaning up his daughter who had just vomited on herself. I literally had to tell him step by step to go get her some clean clothes and then I had to calm her down because she had cried so much she was sick again. If you want to travel with kids, don't expect anyone else to do your parenting for you. Be happy when you get help, but know that it can't (and won't) always be there.


2) We know you're exhausted, and you want to sleep, but NEVER put baby on the floor to sleep. If you must, take turns sleeping while the other looks after baby. If you're a single parent, consider having a friend accompany you. It is not safe to put children on the floor to sleep, and it is NOT fair to expect the flight crew to entertain & supervise your children while you knock yourself out with a Valium. (Not to mention completely impractical if an emergency happens- sorry but your kid is going to end up alone if there's a fire or other emergency)


3) You might think your kids are cute, but after 16 hours no-one else will. Staring games are fun for a few minutes, but know when to make them stop. If other passengers are happy to interact with your kids, great! But please don't take this as a sign to dump the kids with your newfound friends for half the flight. Flight attendants are not there to babysit, but we WILL ask you to keep a handle on your kids if they're getting rowdy & noisy, or bothering other people. And please don't get angry if they do so- it generally takes a lot for us to step in and ask you to parent.

4) "Please keep seatbelts fastened until the seatbelt sign has been switched off" means- seatbelts. All of them. Yes even the mini one that the baby is wearing. Yes even the one your five year old is screaming about wearing. And yes, even the one that holds the car seat on even though the seat weighs 50 kilos it can. still. move. without. a seatbelt.

So many parents roll their eyes and tell me that "nothing is going to happen". Like the time a baggage tug overturned and one of the carts went flying in front of our taxiing aircraft, the pilots hit the brakes and unrestrained toddler, standing on a seat, went flying into the galley and split her face open. Sure nothing's going to happen on the ground.

And to the lady in 16E yesterday, I saw you toss your 9 month old up in the air, playing 'catch'- while we were still on the runway after landing.

Ask the FA- Recap

As you may know, I've recently teamed up with the lovely gals from Aussie company Ciao Bella Travel to write a Q&A for their newsletter. CBT have a great range of travel gear as well as lots of information to help you plan your next trip (or help you daydream those last few hours away on a Friday afternoon!)

The next newsletter will be out soon, so for those of you who might have missed it, here's the first edition of "Ask the Flight Attendant".

Q) Why do I have to open my window blind during takeoff and landing?

A) Believe it or not, this is one of the most common questions passengers ask. There are some urban legends out there about why this has to be done, but believe me, they're NOT true! It can also be annoying if you've just woken up and the sun is really bright, or it's hot outside and you want to stay in the shade- but safety comes first.

The simple reason is, window blinds must be open at these times so that if anything is happening outside the plane that shouldn't be happening, the crew can know what is going on. You might wonder how the crew would know when they are sitting down near the doors for landing. Well, that's where passengers come in. If anything really drastic is happening outside (for example, a fire) we're pretty sure that you will let us know about it! There are also systems built into the plane itself that will inform the pilots if any kind of malfunction is happening.

If you're an uneasy flier, rest assured that the chances of anything bad happening on your flight are minimal. And if you DO see something that you think isn't right- please tell the crew. You might feel silly, but we appreciate it that you're looking out for our safety too. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, whatever you've seen is normal. If this is that one time it's not normal, then telling us means we can do something about it.

Once we've taken off, feel free to close the window shade & enjoy your flight!

If you want to score yourself some fab goodies, head over to Ciao Bella Travel & check out all the lovelies on offer! Soon we're hoping to bring you some fab offers and of course you can also click on 'Become a Member' to receive the latest info right to your inbox, stylishly as always!

Ciao...