I’m a flight attendant – we’ll give bad service to anyone who commits a common mistake
A CANDID flight attendant has gone viral online after sharing a list of advice for passengers.
In , Kristie Koerbel revealed a number of things that make her job more difficult and also explained why there is so much travel chaos at the moment.
The cabin crew member's list has received over 18,000 reactions, has been shared more than 89,000 times, and was described by one commenter as "invaluable".
Among the list are tips for dealing with attendants like Kristie, who claims that simply being nice could be the difference between you receiving the help you need, or being left behind.
She wrote: ";We will not help you if you are mean.
"Even if we can help, we will save our help for someone nice. Tensions are high. Our patience is gone. If you make us mad - you will not be flying on our planes.
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"We will leave you behind without a second thought, and laugh about you later."
Elsewhere on the list, Koerbel explained how a delay can cause a flight to be cancelled, and why that is such a problem for airlines at the moment, who she claims are struggling with staff numbers.
She said: "What you see on the news is an understatement. We are short staffed and overworked. Not just pilots and flight attendants, but also ground crews.
"Without ground crews there is no one to park the planes, drive jetways, get your bags on/off planes, or scan boarding passes.
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"This causes many delays that snowball throughout the day. Sometimes HOURS.
"When flight crews get delayed we time out. We can NOT fly longer than 16 hours. It's illegal.
"So it doesn't matter if you have a wedding to get to, when we are done we are done. The way things are now, there are no back up crews, so when this happens your flight cancels."
Personal hygiene and odour awareness are also important for passengers to consider, according to Koerbel, who revealed that smells, as well as sounds, can add to stress levels.
She said: "Take showers, brush your teeth, leave the perfume off, don't eat stinky food (caesar salad and tuna fish I'm talking to you!), and bring headphones.
"Trust me. These things sound basic, but add to stress on crowded planes.
"If you are stuck on the tarmac for 3 hours after a 4 hour flight, you will thank me for this."
The full 19-point list is as follows:
- "Things are not good..... if it's less than 7 hours - DRIVE!"
- "Download and use the app of the airline you are flying."
- "Fly MUCH earlier than you need to - a whole day early if it's important!!"
- "ALWAYS fly the first flight in the morning."
- "Summer is thunderstorm season. A single storm can shut down a whole airport."
- "Schedule long layovers - Your 1-hour layover is NOT enough anymore."
- "What you see on the news is an understatement. We are short staffed and overworked."
- "When flight crews get delayed we time out."
- "Avoid connecting in Newark (Or any New York airport for that matter)."
- "Be nice. As stated above, we are overworked and tired. We will not help you if you are mean."
- "Being drunk on an airplane is a federal offense, so don't overdo it."
- "Get trip insurance if you have a lot of money invested."
- "Flights are FULL. If you buy the cheap seats you will not be able to sit with your family."
- "If a flight is oversold, and no one volunteers to give up their seats, the family that saved a few $$ by using third party websites will be bumped."
- "Pack smart. Don't be "That guy" holding up boarding because you can't figure out how to fit your bag in the overhead."
- "Take showers, brush your teeth, leave the perfume off, don't eat stinky food."
- "Bring a sweater if you tend to be cold."
- "For the love of God wear shoes to the bathroom!!!"
- "Don't tell a Flight Attendant they look tired. We are and we know. You may cause us to ugly cry right there in galley."
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Kristie is not the only flight attendant to speak candidly about their job recently, with some revealing how much personal information they know about each passenger on their flights.
Others have revealed the secret words they use to talk about the passengers they fancy.
