They are some who really don’t get it. Just yesterday, this person made a comment on a post of mine that it is a cabin crew’s job to lift passenger luggage into the aircraft overhead bin. The person said that is the case for international airlines.
Knowing that this person is not a cabin crew now is not even exposed to the aviation world, I had to correct that false notion. However, he kept insisting that for “international airlines”, that is part of a cabin crew’s job.
Just to give you the low down and based on extensive research, it is NOT. The most flight attendants can do is to lend assistance to passengers who really need help lifting their luggage. These include PWDs, pregnant women, and senior citizens. They are not whatsoever obligated to lift your luggage.
That is not part of their job, that is your responsibility as an abled passenger.
Well going back, I was wondering which international airlines these would be. I decided to message international 5-star to 4-star airlines to find out of this is really the case.
Think about this. These airlines that I had asked are full-service high rated ones. One of them is even a recipient of Skytrax’s “Best Airline in the World” award numerous times. Hence, you would expect that their services are superb!
However, do they also obligate their flight attendants to lift passenger luggage unto the overhead compartments?
The airlines answer
Qatar Airways is a recipient of “World Best Airline for 2022” and a consistent 5-star rated airline. Check out their answer above.
Yes, I asked these questions in 2018. However, nothing has changed. They are even more strict due to safety protocols brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. You might want to ask them the same questions yourselves if you still don’t believe.
Besides, they might say “we answered this question before already.”
Here are more.
I asked this question just today. Consistent answer as the rest. Here are some more!
Cathay Pacific flight attendants have always been strict about this. I witnessed it myself on a flight from Manila to Hong Kong. The Filipino passenger asked the flight attendant to lift his luggage. The FA declined and the passenger ended up lifting it himself, swiftly! Cathay Pacific is a 5-star airline, take note!
I really wonder which international airlines the guy was pertaining to?
Well that’s beside the point. This is to prove that it is not a flight attendant’s job to lift passenger luggage unto the overhead compartment for numerous reasons, particularly health! Airlines do take care of their crew too. They make sure that the cabin crew are in tip top shape all the time so they can respond immediately and effectively to any emergency situation.
So what is the job of the flight attendant?
Their primary role is to ensure the safety and security of passengers on board. Attending to passenger needs is secondary. Ensuring a comfortable flight too is secondary. However, there are still limitations to what they can do on board to serve the passengers. Incase you want to know why airlines do not obligate their flight attendants to stow passenger luggage, you might want to read this.
First love never dies. I fell in love with airplanes and aviation when I was a kid. My dream was to become a pilot, but destiny led me to another path: to be an aviation digital media content creator and a small business owner. My passion for aviation inspires me to bring you quality content through my website and social accounts. Aviation is indeed in my blood and blog!
