En Voyage Issue#15 Flickbook

En Voyage
AURIGNY
BEHIND THE SCENES
KAY HOLLINGWORTH
SENIOR CABIN CREW
I joined Aurigny in February 2014 and the
following year I got promoted to Senior
Cabin Crew Member.
Have you always wanted to
work in the airline industry?
The airline industry has always
appealed to me and I love
to travel but due to family
commitments I did not pursue it.
What is the worst job
you have had?
The worst job I had was my first
job after leaving school, it was
in a factory in Manchester doing
piece work making safety gloves.
I worked with amazing people
which made the days not so bad.
What job did you want to do
when you were at school?
I would say two, a nurse or cabin
crew. I was a carer for several
years before Aurigny which I really
enjoyed, I still help out now from
time to time doing caring and
activities at the residential home
where I was previously employed.
What is the strangest request
you have had?
Where do I start? A passenger once
asked if we could turn around
mid-flight as they had left their
sunglasses at home. One asked if
we had sushi, others have asked
for hot meals. While making a
passenger aware that he was in the
emergency exit seat he said, ‘It’s
ok, I’m a fisherman!’ Needless to
say, I carried on and briefed him.
What is the best thing
about your job?
There are so many good things
about my job. My colleagues,
both on the flight deck and the
cabin crew. We all get along so
well and work great together as
a team, which is so important. If
any safety or emergency situation
were to arise then we would
need to be able to communicate
well as a team. I enjoy shift
work - each day is different and I
definitely could not do a nine-tofive
job. I also love meeting and
greeting new people each day.
What is the biggest challenge
for cabin crew?
The biggest challenge is the
weather. For example, turbulence
can be a problem when carrying
out our daily duties as well as
being aware of any safety issues
that may arise and making
passengers as comfortable as
possible and reassuring nervous
passengers. Fog is challenging
especially if you are in the hold
and unable to land. Its frustrating
for everyone, the crew as well as
the passengers – we all want to
get home at the end of the day.
Do you have funny moments?
There was a function in Guernsey
where famous lookalikes were
brought over. The Queen’s
lookalike was on our flight.
While securing the cabin for
landing the lady bent down to
get something from her bag. My
colleague leapt over the trolley
shouting, ‘Is the Queen ok?’ She
thought she had collapsed.
Do you feel part of the community
working for Aurigny?
I am proud to work for the
island's airline and of the charity
work it does. I took part in
helping the GSPCA last year.
What was the last film you saw?
The Sound of Music. It is my all
time favourite film. On a family
holiday to Turkey I took down
the guitar from the bar and got
the children to sit on the floor
pretending we were the Von
Trapps! This is my party piece now.
What are you good at that
may surprise people?
I would say singing but that would
not surprise my colleagues as I
am always singing. I used to do
Latin American dancing in which
I achieved my gold medal. I still
have my dance shoes so maybe
one day I will take it up again.
14 En Voyage | Aurigny’s Magazine