november-2010

PHOTOS © GUIDO CASTAGNOLI, CHRISTOPHER HUNT, JAMES WINSPEAR
PARIS MARJAN DE VROEY, 41 PILOT
We're truly an easyJet family, as both my
husband and I are pilots for the airline, which
I joined nine years ago. We do exactly the
same job, with him taking over on the days
I'm off duty. We joke that together we make
an entire pilot. He and I met at our aviation
school in Belgium. Back then we were fl ight
partners, and we fought a lot. I don't think us
co-piloting again would be a very good idea!
Naturally our three children want to
follow in our footsteps, but I want them to
feel as passionately about fl ying as I did when
I was young. The training is hard and it’s a
15 YEARS | OUR PEOPLE
LUTON
JENNIFER SHEEHAN, 24
SENIOR CABIN CREW
I’ve worked at easyJet for fi ve-and-ahalf
years. I’m now a Senior Cabin Crew
member, which means I have to manage
the crew quite closely. We all work as a
team onboard but I have to make sure that
everyone knows exactly what they’re doing
throughout the day. The best bits about
my job are meeting new people and the
travelling. I think I’ve been to about 100
different destinations! And because every
journey is different, you have a different
story at the end of each day.
We’re doing something at the moment
called the Spirit Awards, to recognise the
good things that we cabin crew do onboard
for our passengers. I was nominated for one
recently. We had this mother and her young
child come onboard and she was the last
passenger on the plane. She was really upset
as she’d had a hard time in the terminal,
and I noticed that she wasn’t wearing any
shoes. So I took off my cabin shoes and gave
them to her. Luckily I had some high heels
that I could wear for the rest of the day –
although my feet hurt! It was actually my
colleagues who nominated me, which made
me feel really proud.
Working for easyJet has made me a
better person. I’ve always liked to help
people and I’ve always been quite caring,
but the company has developed my
personal skills – whether it’s assisting
passengers onboard or helping my crew to
become better cabin crew. These fi ve-anda-half
years have gone by in the blink of an
eye – it’s been an absolute whirlwind.
daily challenge being responsible for people’s
security. As a woman it’s a great job because
you don’t have to bring it home with you.
Generally about 10% of all pilots are women,
but we have more at easyJet as it’s a very
open company. That also explains why there’s
such a diversity of nationalities represented,
which creates a fun atmosphere. After all
these years I still get a buzz from being in
the cockpit, the camaraderie with the crew,
the beauty of the plane and of course the
amazing view you get when you’re up there
actually fl ying.
15 TH BIRTHDAY ISSUE | TRAVELLER | 33