A Flight Attendant

by Larissa Katiukha

Grace is a young flight attendant. She works for Cathay Pacific Airlines. She is from Hong Kong. She is a pretty girl. She is medium height and very slim. She has got dark hair and brown slanting eyes. She has a beautiful smile and pleasant looks. The day before the flight she packs her suitcase. She puts a safety manual in her bag. On her working day she takes a shower and puts on an elegant suit.

Grace does her hair and puts on make-up. She has to look nice. She takes her bag and goes to the airport, where she fills in some papers and attends an instruction session with the lead flight attendant. Then she takes a bus and gets on the plane. Before the passengers' boarding Grace along with others prepares for the flight, organizes some things, checks if they have all the safety equipment, makes sure they have necessary food for meals and that the seats are clean. The captain conducts his briefing, telling about safety-related issues, the flight time, weather conditions, etc.

During the flight she likes providing good service and satisfying passengers' needs. She distributes meals and listens to peoples' wishes. She is very polite, friendly and helpful. She likes doing her best. She works the whole night on board, so she gets tired. After the flight she takes the crew bus and goes to the hotel to get some rest.

The job of a flight attendant is not easy. She has to get up at different times, sometimes in the middle of the night and get prepared for the flight. A flight attendant always has to wear a uniform and skilful make-up. The flight can be tough and stressful. It depends on the weather conditions and passengers' mood and health. A flight attendant has to spend a lot of time on her feet, so they will be sore. Some passengers can be demanding and picky or even aggressive. It is difficult to have a good personal life or keep relationships going.

Follow-up questions:

1. What does a flight attendant do before a flight?
2. What does she do during the flight?
3. What does she have to look like? Does she have to be beautiful?
4. What personal features are important for a flight-attendant?
5. What skills does she need to have?
6. Why is her job appealing?
7. What are the disadvantages of the job?
8. Does a flight attendant earn good money?
9. What other interesting jobs do you know?
10. Why do they attract people?
11. What job would you like to do for pleasure/ to earn money?
12. Do you like jobs in which you have to travel a lot?
13. Would you like to become a flight-attendant?
14. Do you have necessary qualities for the job?
15. Is it better to be a flight-attendant or a model?
16. What qualities and skills do you have?
17. What job is suitable for you?