Originally Posted by
Skyone
It is a respect for the position. Having flown stateside for 25 years then 11 years overseas.....the ability of the international F/As is every bit as good as their US counterparts. EK crashed a 777 in Dubai and the cabin crew did an incredible job evacuating the plane. Yet on a layover, as Kap stated, they would respect the position to check in. Stateside, I had a few occasions where I was TOLD they didn't have to either listen or ignored instructions/briefings/etc. Never overseas and have seen almost "wrestling matches" to get to the check-in desk first to get their "deserved" rooms. In fact, I have seen where the desk clerks would allow familiar F/As hand out the keys and sign everybody in. Just the nature of the beast.
This is true. I spend most of my life in the US airlines and have been overseas now for 10 years. The Cabin Crew (as we call them) in my current overseas airline are FAR superior to what I see in the USA legacy carriers in every category. MUCH higher level of professionalism and discipline. Much harder working. MUCH higher standards all the way around. It almost is pure pain for me to fly on a USA airline now, they just seem so sloppy all the way around. It is no wonder that the USA airlines never make it even close to the top 10 worldwide in SkyTraxx airline awards (which are based on millions of passengers voting).
Our pilots check in first at the hotel. I don't like it. I'd rather go last as I always did in the States. But it is the company culture here and that is the way they want it. You can't change it. The cabin crews will absolutely refuse to accept a key before the cockpit crew. No use making them feel uncomfortable and making a big deal out of something you can't change anyway. I am ALWAYS addressed by my title as "Captain -----" in all communications with ALL staff at every level in the airline. I usually am given a suite or at least an upgraded room at the hotel, along with access to the executive lounge for free breakfast / happy hour. This is negotiated into our hotel contracts by the company.
I worked in one overseas airline where the cabin crew wouldn't set foot on the bus or walk up the stairs to the airplane until the captain gave them permission. Seemed crazy to me and I was never comfortable with it, but once again when you work overseas you're not there to change their company culture. You're there to fit into their system, not tell them why ours is better. In the USA, we are a low power-distance culture. Some of these other countries are high power-distance cultures. It is what it is. And from a safety standpoint, I see definite advantages to the overseas system.
The downside is that you lose the familiarity and family feeling when everything is so formal. The USA airline scene (at least in my experience) is a "fun" place to work, and the companies in the USA even emphasize the need to have fun on the job. They want to promote a family atmosphere. Not overseas. We're not there for fun. We're there to work, and to perform to the highest standards and to do so precisely by the book (which is constantly changing because they are constantly refining the system to get better and better based on feedback). Our goal is to simply be the best there is, and fun has nothing to do with it. And so there isn't a lot of going out and socializing on layovers. That is a real downside of the formal system.