Ask the FA- How Do I Get a Bulkhead Seat?

I get asked this question a lot, and with the economy the way it is, oil prices rising and thus fares going up, people want as much value as they can when they travel. For most people, this means the best legroom for as little fare as possible. I'll add the disclaimer here that various strategies work best for different airlines, however a combination of these will probably give you the best chance..

There are several ways to increase your chances of scoring that coveted extra-legroom bulkhead seat.

Some airlines have the frequent flyer programs where you can have a 'preferred seat' put into your booking profile. The only problem is, these seats are popular and if a higher-tier member also requests these, you will miss out.

Web check-in is increasingly popular, so this may be another option, but you have to be quick!! Bear in mind depending on the aircraft configuration, some of these seats may be classified as 'emergency exit row' seats and depending on the airline may not be selectable during online check-in. (Seat Guru may be able to help you check this & have great reviews on leg-room and other in-flight amenities.)



If all else fails, try to check in as early as possible, and ask politely whether any of those seats are still available. As they are popular you may be disappointed, ask only once! You would be surprised how far being pleasant to check-in staff will get you. Always answer questions about exit rows honestly- people sometimes 'hide' reasons they think will prevent them having the seat they want- but even if you get it, the crew responsible for that row can still move you out if they think you shouldn't be sitting there.

These days, it's become increasingly common for airlines to charge a premium for bulkhead seats as they are so popular. In a worst case scenario, you may just have to pony up the cash to get that seat. Sold out? It's supply & demand baby! I often hear complaints from people who are tall or otherwise feel they need the legroom more than others. All I can say to that is, the onyl fair way for an airline to allocate bulkhead seats (aside from frequent flyer loyalty) is by a pay-to-use system. You want it, you pay, and as with many other things in life, it's first in, best dressed.



One last thing- bulkhead seats (especially on widebody flights are often also the location of baby basinettes; if you still get one after all the parents have been allocated, think to yourself do you really want to be sitting near the crying babies all flight!!! :)

Once & For All...

To answer the age-old question...

Q. If three people are sitting in a full row on the plane, who gets the middle armrests?



A. The person in the middle. Why? Because the person in the window gets to lean their head on the window, and the person on the aisle gets the aisle armrest and to lean out into the aisle* every so often. The sucker in the middle gets nothing but the solace of leaning their elbows on the two middle armrests to ward off the fat spillover of two complete strangers.

(*But please, not when the beverage cart is in the aisle)

Yes, I have had to have this discussion with passengers on board. And yes, they were all (outwardly at least) adults.

If you have any other airline "mysteries" you'd like solved, leave a question in the comments!

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Image: Prop airline chairs from the tv series "LOST"- from Google Images

Babies on the Plane

Flying has kept me super-busy lately, but in between my trips I had the pleasure of participating in the third episode of the Crew Lounge Podcast, which is a talk-show type panel of flight attendants talking about current issues in the airline industry & taking questions from the cabin. TCL is run by Bobby of Up, Up and a Gay and Sara Keagle of the Flying Pinto blog. This week's episode included Sky High Boy and Jen.

If you haven't already checked out the first episodes of TCL, go do it, I am sure you will love it. (But not until you've read this post first ;)

One of the topics that came up during our disccussion was the use (or non-use, as the case may be) of a device called an infant extension seat belt.

Basically, this is a seatbelt designed to be used by lap-held children up to the age of 2 when travelling in aircraft. This device is known as an 'infant/extension seatbelt' in Australia as it is a combination seatbelt- it can be used both as an extender for larger passengers, or to restrain a lap-held infant in flight.

The infant seatbelt is described as follows:

A device known as a “supplementary loop belt” provides an additional seat belt with stitched loops through which the adult seat belt is passed. The adult belt is fastened around the adult, and the additional belt is then separately fastened around the infant.

A picture will probably give you a better idea of what it looks like. (I have had some difficulty finding a photo, and the ones I have were lost in a computer crash last year). Once combined with the adult seatbelt, it forms a figure-8 like shape.

This seatbelt must be used for take-off, landing and in turbulence, or whenever the seatbelt sign is illuminated. Here is a baby in the seatbelt. Feeding & nursing can still take place when using this type of seatbelt.


Now here's where the confusion for travelling parents comes in. Different aviation authorities in various countries each have their own views on the use of these infant seatbelts. During the latest Crew Lounge podcast, it was discussed that these seatbelts are not mandated for use in the US or Canada. The view of the FAA is that having a child held on the lap by the parent is the safest method.

Picture showing the recommended brace position for parents with nursed infants:


However, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority of Australia holds the opinion that using the infant seatbelt provides the most protection in the event of sudden stoppage (e.g. the loads experienced during aborted takeoff) or in turbulence. However, they do make note of the fact that infant seatbelts provide limited protection in a crash compared to a child seat, and go on to say that a car seat or child restraint (such as the CARES child harness) is the best possible means of restraining a child or baby in-flight.
(From Civil Aviation Advisory Publication 235-2(1))

Where the trouble occurs is when families take multiple flights through countries having jurisdiction of varying agencies. For example, you might fly a US-based carrier to Sydney, then take a domestic Australian airline to Darwin. On the first leg of your journey, holding the baby on your lap (without any type of restraint or seatbelt) is acceptable and complies with the laws of the US. However, travelling from Sydney to Darwin, you would find that you would be required to make use of the infant seatbelt. This is mandated by the Civil Aviation Regulations and is not a negotiable option or choice for parents.

Generally, the laws of the country of registration of the aircraft you are flying in apply. I think this is where our flying family (mentioned in the Questions From the Cabin on Crew Lounge podcast #3) ran into problems. If you're unsure which rules apply to your flight, be sure to check with the airline/s concerned well before your flight. Even if a car seat/harness is allowed by law, the cabin crew still have the final say onboard the aircraft. If there is any doubt as to the integrity or safety of your device, you may be asked not to use it.

If you do want to play it safe and take a car seat, be aware that not all airlines allow car seats or child restraint systems. Check with your airline and also ensure what is included in your baggage allowance should you be required to check the car seat in.

For quick reference, I have compiled a list of Australian airlines and which allow the use of car seats. Again, be sure to mention your car seat when booking and check if your specific seat model is allowed by that airline.

AIRLINE CAR SEATS ALLOWED?
Tiger Airways NO
Virgin/Pacific Blue NO
Qantas YES
Jetstar YES
REX YES
Skywest YES
Qantaslink CHECK WITH RES

If you have any questions about car seats, travelling with babies & children, or anything else about flying- feel free to leave a comment or chase me up on Twitter!

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)

Fly on the Tiger... (Trip Report)

TIGER AIRWAYS TT812/813

AIRCRAFT: Airbus A320

I arrived at the airport well in time to check in ahead of Tiger's strict 45-min cutoff policy. There were only a few people in front of me, so five minutes later I was at the front of the queue.

I was greeted by a friendly older lady, who asked me for my ID. (Being a smart traveller, I put my airline ID in the license holder of my wallet, hehe) This garnered me a plum exit-row seat (on the aisle no less) without having to pay the $25 exit row fee, or the $5 seat selector fee which normally apply. There was a motive on her part though- current rules require a certain amount of passengers to be seated in 'self-help' exit rows.

As I was playing within the rules and only had a carry-on bag, she checked the bag complied with the 7kg limit, and gave me a tag to attach to my bag so that gate staff would know it was ok to board.

I also had a handbag but they didn't seem to notice/care about that. This bag contained my netbook, bottle of water and other similar items which would have certainly put my rollaboard over 7kgs. But noticed most of the other passengers had handbags or laptop bags as well. If they were on the smaller side, they didn't seem to have tags.

Once she gave me my boarding pass (the scannable kind which look like a supermarket receipt)

I headed through security. Aside from a bunch of foreigners thinking it was ok to cut the line while I was about to put my bag on the belt, security screening went without a hitch. I got pulled aside for the screening test, signed my name, and on my way to the departure lounge.



In the lounge I bought a couple of magazines & some water, then browsed the books to pass some time. Soon it was time to board. Our flight was boarding via the tarmac, front & rear stairs according to seat row. This was when I had an interesting exchange with a member of Tiger staff. I took a photo of our plane (flash off of course as it was night time)

and immediately was pretty much shouted at. When I asked what the problem was, she rather rudely informed me that taking photos on the tarmac is not allowed. (More on this issue later-I'm currently following it up with the airport authorities, as I have worked at this airport and there was never a no-photo policy for other than commercial use)

Once on the plane, I stowed my bag & rollaboard in the overhead locker, and took my seat in the exit row, reading the briefing card like a good little passenger.

One of the cabin crew came over to give the exit briefing, while it covered the main points I did note there was no advice on what to do should the exit be unsafe, other than not to open it. Personally, I brief the passenger if an exit is unsafe they must not let anyone exit and direct them to the nearest exit being used. I guess Tiger like to keep basic with this as well as their service.

Here are a few observations from my two sectors with Tiger:

* Seat pitch is pretty cramped. Worse when the person in front slams their seat back the instant the seatbelt sign goes off. When my seat was fully reclined, the (empty) seat next to me was only about 3 inches ahead. According to their website, Tiger's seat pitch on the A320 is 72.5 cm for standard rows. I think they've measured this in the reclined position, as it doesn't look like 72cm when the seats are upright.

Here's a picture taken from the side.

My netbook is only about 8 to 9 inches long from front (screen) to back, and was resting right up on the seatback in front. I wasn't leaning forward, so you can see there isn't much room. I had to prop my elbow up just to type. It wwasn't very comfortable. I suggest don't work on Tiger flights! :P

* If you're right handed & want to use a laptop, go for a seat on the RHS, sitting in the A seat means you can hardly type, without getting pins and needles, especially if the seatback in front is also reclined all the way.

*There was a giant wad of chewy on my tray table, and in both airsick bags in the seat pocket. Menu card wass really tatty. Tiger would do well to spend the extra 10c laminating each card, instead of having to replace them all the time. Crew were obliging when I asked for wipes to clean table, but didn't take them away again. I had to go to the lav to dispose of my trash as only one trash run was done on the whole flight- understandable on a SYD-CBR perhaps but not a 3 hour flight.

* Although the cabin crew walk around while the seatbelt sign is on, at least they DO enforce it, asking pax who stand up to be seated until it is off.

* For a newish A320, the toilets sure reeked a lot! Not just 'during the flight' smell, but the deeply-ingrained smell of pee that a men's toilet in a park might have. Not sure why this is, maybe they don't deep clean them very often. As you can see, the pee spends a bit of time on the floor of the lavatory.


* Service consists of one run-through with the carts (selling small snack items & some beverages)

followed by the trash cart. No more trash runs, even toward the end of the flight. Seeing as TT crew get comission on sales, you'd think it'd be worth one more quick run with the cart on night flights, as not everyone sleeps, and they'd make more money on sales. Not to mention that there's plenty of time on a 3 hour flight, and the crew seem quite bored (judging from the huge pile of magazines on the galley bench that even a well-read mag hostie would be amazed by)

* Another interesting thing to note: While soft drinks are served, the only choices are Coke, Diet Coke & Solo Lemon (like Lift or Mountain Dew). No lemonade to be seen. The Tiger website also advertises their menu as having the good old cheese & crackers pack that Virgin also sell. The crew tell me they haven't had them on board for quite some time, around 6 months I believe. Seemsan update is in order!

* With regard to alcoholic beverages, Tiger really cater to the 'bogan' stereotype, serving only wine or the pre-mixed bourbon & Coke in cans. Not even a pre-mix Smirnoff! What about vodka drinkers, Tiger??? While I'm sure they do very well with old Jim, it couldn't hurt to add vodka to cater to a wider audience.

RETURN FLIGHT NOTE: Check-in was fairly quick, although enforcement of the 7kg carry-on luggage limit seemed to be a bit hit and miss. Most of the check-in staff seemed oblivious to the old 'hide the bag' game, which I witnessed several passengers play as I waited in line. trust me, you wouldn't get away with that at Virgin! Tiger also make you put a tag on your bag which means it's passed the weight check at check in. The only fault with this system is I freely bought bottled water, several magazines and some food items which would have taken my bag above the 7kg limit. (Let's not talk about the handbag on my shoulder, which I would have happily given up for weighing if they had actually asked to) Then again, I don't think other airlines weigh bags after check-in, unless they're obviously heavy-looking or oversized.




Overall impressions? if you want to get somewhere cheaply, albeit a bit uncomfortably for my 5'5" frame, then Tiger is for you. The service is about what you'd expect at your local Coles, but then again there's not much chance for the crew to go 'above and beyond'.

If you want more comfort, a bit of a laugh and a reasonable selection of food, drinks & entertainment, fly Virgin. If you want better legroom on Virgin, book your trips on the Embraer E190 (no tv's but the legroom is way better than the 737, and leaps ahead of Tiger)

If you want pretty good seats, the chance to upgrade on points to 'real' business class and unlimited booze (between capital cities weekdays & Perth and everywhere else 7 days a week) fly Qantas' CityFlyer service.

Tiger: Cheap A-B, but they'll growl if you don't read the T&C's...

PS- Don't take photos... well, at least until we find out if this 'no-photo' policy is enforceable or not...

This one was in Adelaide, for testing purposes. Once again, Tiger staff pounced... Interesting, as photos on the tarmac have never been a problem when taking Virgin Blue or Qantas flights at this airport...


Adelaide Airport check-in area


Tiger check-in desks


Baggage collection

Flying the A380- Singapore Airlines Trip Report (Part 2)

Once I had boarded & stowed all my stuff, I set about getting some pictures. As I hadn'tdone much long-haul flying as a passenger, I erred on the side of caution & requested an aisle seat. It was a bit annoying as I usually like a window seat for that reason, but the people sitting in my row were nice enough to let me lean over them to snap a few pics.




(The seat layout on the SQ 380 is 3-4-3 on main deck economy- I think it's the same for upper deck as well, though I only got a brief look)


I'd also like to add I really love the seat pockets- not only was there a section for the afore-pictured magazines & safety card, but additional elasticised pockets for iPod, camera, water bottle or whatever else one wants to cram in there. I could fit all the essentials near to hand without having to resort to rummaging in the overhead every 10 minutes.

Another neat feature (sadly forgot to photograph it) was the footrest. I found it a bit awkqard when sleeping, but good when I was awake watching tv,and wanting to take the weight off my feet. I think this might be better than the foot-net that Qantas have, but as I haven't yet tried that I can't be certain.

After take-off, the crew came around with a drinks service. Looking at the menu, I saw they were offering a Singapore Sling. Of course, I had to try it, in honour of my first trip on the SQ A380. I had thought it would be made with a pre-mix, but no, the friendly Singapore Girl mixed it all to order from the drinks cart:


That was really cool, but quite strong, so I also got a lemonade to have with the peanuts.


Next was our meal, which was really tasty. Again with the metal cutlery, which is kind of strange to see after dealing with plastic knives for so long! I ate pretty much everything, and then they gave out some icecream which was small pieces of icecream covered in chocolate. They were really good!

After lunch, most people went to sleep or watched movies, so I took the chance to have a wanfder around and look at the plane. I'm still kicking myself, at the time I felt like I was taking lots of photos but later when I looked at them I realised I didn't have any of the stair case or upper deck. Oh well, next time!



View out of the Right 5 door viewing window. The clouds were really cool, but they also gave us some turbulence. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I found it odd that the seatbelt sign didn't seem to be enforced. An announcement would be made, but after that people still got up and walked around with not really any interference from the crew. (They do things differently I guess!)

The plane nerd in me had to take a picture of this...
Airbus logo on each of the doors.



One for my flight attendant readers:
The door mechanism is a lot different from what we might be used to... although it does have similarities to others in the Airbus family.

Just think, it once took a week to make this trip! Now it's under 14 hours.



Getting there...


About an hour and a half before we arrived we also got a supper/dinner. This was chicken with noodles and was really good! Kind of like chicken noodle soup, but without the soup :P

And a few final 'plane geek' photos :)

The Heathrow Express train from Paddington to the airport. It's pretty high-tech, a lot like a plane itself. See the exit-row lighting, and the folding seats near the door which look like crew jumpseats. It even had wi-fi!! Took about 15mins to make the trip, which was well worth 16 pounds. (Hint: If you're crew, show your airline ID, the nice guy at the ticket counter gave me a crew ticket for 8 pounds!!)


The iPod connector on the seatback entertainment console:

The A380 also has AV input for a portable DVD or similar, and also allows you to view content from a USB stick like PDF files and Word documents. If you're not sure about what plane you're flying, or what facilities it has on board, check the airline website or the ever-handy Seat Guru website.


The IFE handset. The reverse side has a keyboard (for seat to seat messaging that hot guy ;) and gaming buttons for the multitude of games such as Mummy Mania and WHo Wants to Be A Millionaire. Hours of fun!

And I found this amusing:

The A380 is so big they give you a map to fiure out where your seat is!!!

Overall, I really enjoyed the flight and the crew were great- nothing was too much trouble. It's true- Singapore is a great way to fly!

Stay tuned for a Singapore Girl pic on the Galley Curtain blog =)

When is 'large' too large?

Click on the post title to read the source article.

Heather recently made a rather controversial post regarding passengers on aircraft, who are on both sides of the Weight Debate: i.e., how 'large' is too 'large'. Opinions are quite divided and aside from stating that I have my own personal opinions, that's all I'll contribute. It's an interesting conundrum, that's for sure.

Now it seems that Phillipine Airlines are weighing in on the issues (No pun intended, of course). It seems they won a legal battle with one of their crew whom they considered to be too large to operate safely on the aircraft.

I know each country has its own rules, so it would be interesting to see if the outcome would have been the sae had it been say, AA or British Airways. In Australia, I believe the carrier could win the case so long as they could prove that the crew member's weight did, in fact, present an actual safety risk.