THE SILENT REVIEW_WINTER EDITION 2021_WEB

FLY ON THE WALL –
TOP THINGS CABIN CREW
TALK ABOUT AT WORK
By Julian Groneberg
In the base, or on board, what’s a good workplace without a bit of chatter between
colleagues? When it comes to us flight attendants, we have a lot to say. In fact, a
plane is a very social workplace by virtue of there being plenty of listening ears
and moving mouths — all within very close proximity.
We’re the master of making small – or sometimes in the
wee hours, big – talk. It’s probably part of why we were hired
in the first place. There’s something quite special about being
part of this family, and being privy to
the insider things we bond and chat about. As I see it, the
social and close-knit crew community is by far one of the
best aspects of the job. Whether it’s for the flying kangaroo,
the big V or even the Gulf airlines – if you’ve been crew,
you can guarantee you’ve chatted in the galley about one
of the following on one of your trips.
THEIR ROSTERS
“Have you got just day returns? How many hours
are you on? How has reserve been?”
Probably the safest topic of conversation is the roster. It’s a
great conversation starter because everyone has something to
say about it. Roster chat typically goes into overdrive in the
days before the new work schedule is released. It’s a broad
topic of convo, as roster chat also stems into all other roster
related specifics such as trip swaps, days off between trips,
late or early shifts and on it goes.
When it comes to rosters, you
can bet if someone has a good
one, or a particularly bad/tiring
one, it will be discussed.
OTHER CREW
“Oh I am working with so and
so again. Have you worked
with them before? What is that
CSM like?”
Just like any workplace, the
people who comprise it are a
conversation staple. Trying to pretend crew don’t talk about
each other is like trying to argue that planes get a deep clean
after each flight. You can guarantee if someone has done
something irritating, or if there was a crew that clashed there
will be a post-mortem about it on a future flight from the crew
who witnessed it. It’s not all negative though – there’s also a
lot of love for the people we like to work with, and the times
that we have shared together on trips.
COMPANY ANNOUNCEMENTS, SPECULATION
AND RUMOURS
“Did you hear we’re going to start flying to ….”
“They are going to offer another round of VR.”
Any announcement, or ‘crumour’, and you can bet crew are
talking about it – even before it is formally announced. Pilots
are also in on this game. One of the speculations aircrew tend
to get most excited about is new destinations. The longer I fly
the more I have to see it to believe it, which is often when it’s
in the media, or when the trip is on my roster. Still, it’s a fun
thing to think about. Some speculation however much less so:
such anxiety-inducing prospects
as the stubborn rumour from a
few years back that the Brisbane
International base was set to close.
THE PASSENGERS
“Did you see 58B, go and check
him out – definitely the BOB.”
“Can’t deal with her.
She complained that the locker
above her seat was full and
it was only her space to use...
Dollface needs to get real.”
24 WINTER EDITION 2021