Airline pilots have high social status and earn a great deal of money. Air hostesses have an uncertain status and earn little. For those recently qualified, the basic pay in some airlines is as little as 300 a month.
This is little to balance against the possibility of a hijack or a disaster. So why do they do it?
I went to see Diane Humphreys, Senior Hostess with Dan-Air at Manchester Airport, to try to find the answer to this question. Mrs. Humphreys has had the job for 16 years. Before that she was an ordinary air hostess for six years.
One reason why air hostesses dont get over-anxious about flying may be that theyre so busy, before, during and after a flight. I asked Mrs. Humphreys to tell me what a typical summer timetable for a hostess would be. She said that four or five flights a week during the summer is not uncommon.
On a Monday morning, a hostess might have an early morning flight, perhaps at 7 a.m. She has to check in 1.5 hours before the flight.
She has to prepare the cabin and toilets and make sure that the food and drinks are aboard. Dan-Air does not do long-distance flights, just short or medium distance ones, and so there are no overnight stopovers unless weather conditions prevent take-off or landing, or the plane develops technical problems. Theres a 45-minute interval, when the hostesses have to prepare the plane for the return flight. Depending on where youre flying, this can make it a 12-hour day; with delays it can even be 16 hours.
During the flight youve got no time to relax the safety instructions have to be demonstrated and the food and drinks served. Youre always busy. So one day you might have an early morning flight; the next an afternoon flight; the day after you might be on relief duty and have to be ready to work if someone else becomes ill or there is an emergency. This means that you have to stay near a phone all the time and be no more than an hour and a half from the airport.
Air hostess
Hijack
2 What are the duties of an air hostess before a flight? Read aloud the extract which says about it.
3 What flights does the company Dan-Air do?
4 Why is the profession of an air hostess stressful?
15
1 Read the article and say what it is about in 2-3 sentences.
When Sebastian was a boy at school, his favourite lesson was art, and he won several prizes for it. Once he left school, he got a position as a clerk in a bank, but three times a week he went to evening classes in art, and whenever he had time at the week-ends, he painted.
He painted in a very modem mannermysterious objects and shapes, women with three pink eyes, large blank areas, and so on.
After a few months he thought, Perhaps I can sell some of my pictures and get enough money to afford to leave the bank and become a real artist. Then I can travel around as much as I like, and go to foreign museums, and see other artists paintings, and study in other countries when I feel like it. Though I try to make the best of the job and I dont regard the work as difficult at least not at present I dont like life in a bank. I only enjoy painting.
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In the bank, Sebastian sometimes had to deal with a man who owned a picture shop, and after he had had a few conversations with him, Sebastian invited him to his home one evening to see some of his work. Then perhaps you could tell me whether I can really be a good artist and get some money from my painting, Sebastian said hopefully.
The man said he was prepared to come and see what he thought of Sebastians work, so he arrived one evening at Sebastians home. Sebastian took the man to his studio and started to show him some of his pictures, with some pride and hope.
The man looked at them one after the other while Sebastian watched his face, but to Sebastians disappointment the man did not say anything, and his expression did not change at any of them.
Then, when he had finished, he looked around, and his glance fell on something else. A happy look came over his face for the first time, and he said, Now I like one very much! Its so full of deep feeling! Im sure I could sell this one for you!
That, said Sebastian, is the place where I clean the paint off my brushes.
2 What did Sebastian think after several months of art classes? Read aloud the extract which says about it.
3 When did the visitor arrive at Sebastians home?
4 Why was Sebastian disappionted when he watched his visitors face?
