It wheels down, sounds – and the bottom up.
Welcome to the wild world of pilot and aircrew parties that turn layovers into Tinder-fueled bacchanals.
The spotlight was thrown on the wild scene by revelations that a married British Airways pilot sniffed cocaine from a topless woman’s breast hours before a flight to London then appeared to fly the plane.
“I’m a very naughty boy,” he texted a colleague.
And while he may be unusual, say the cabin crew, there is no doubt that he is not alone.
“I once saw a pilot throw up at dinner on a layover from drinking too much,” said a flight attendant for Alaska Airlines.
“He must have been in his hotel room, so he was on another level when he arrived for dinner. The captain after dinner took him back to his room and he probably slept for 15 hours.”
It seemed to help: she didn’t smell booze at the gate, the flight attendant of 15 years recalled.
When a plane arrives at a layover, it’s the start of party time for some pilots and attendants — and it can get wild. Svitlana – stock.adobe.com
“He came onto the plane professionally dressed and not drunk in my opinion,” the attendant said.
“Am I nervous at all? Nope. Did he break any rules? Not one,” he said. “Did he stop drinking before the 10 hour rule? Of course.”
Marika Mikusova, who chronicled her five years in the sky in 2022’s “Flight Stewardess Diary,” never crossed paths with a drunken colleague, but recalled a “funny” scenario of seeing a pilot with a wedding tie during a pre-flight briefing.
“As soon as we landed and gathered at the airport to collect our suitcases, the ring mysteriously disappeared from her ring finger,” Mikusova, 34, from the Czech Republic, told The Post.
Mike Beaton, a married British Airways pilot, sniffed cocaine from a shirtless woman’s breast while in Johannesburg, South Africa, just hours before a scheduled flight to London.
“This kind of thing happens from time to time. Pilots are considered ‘hot stuff’ among (not only) single cabin crew, so it’s no surprise that my colleague overshares details about the jacuzzi the captain has in his cabin and how he enjoys his stay there.”
Meanwhile, another flight attendant for a major American airline says adultery is rampant in the industry, fueled in large part by “super charismatic” female pilots impersonating Hollywood stars.
“I don’t know if they saw ‘Catch Me If You Can’ or something and decided to try to be Leonardo DiCaprio,” he said.
Leonardo DiCaptio, Jr.’s charismatic Frank Abagnale, Jr. in “Catch Me If You Can” has inspired real-life pilots to try their luck at layovers, The Post was told. ©DreamWorks/Courtesy Everett Collection
“I have friends who have different Tinder dates in every city we go to. He told the woman it was normal, so I guess that was his business.”
An industry vet who runs a podcast, Flight Attendant Confessional, where he shares stories drawn from more than 5 million miles on major US airlines told The Post: “There are a lot of cheaters in the airline industry. Pilots and flight attendants.
“A friend of mine has been dating a man who has two lives. His girlfriend, and his family with children. He doesn’t know.
“He lives with his wife and children in one city and is based in another city. The occasional extra night absence will not go unnoticed in this job.
A former flight attendant from Los Angeles said, “Just like any industry, just because you can pass a background check doesn’t mean you’re a good person and follow the rules.” Shutterstock
“In fact one of the men I really admired cheated on my friend. I would be very nervous until now in the industry. But some pilots are really good people.”
A former flight attendant from Los Angeles said, “Just like in any industry, just because you can pass a background check doesn’t mean you’re a good person and follow the rules.
“There are individuals with addiction problems and unions have resources to help.”
Most flight attendants “tend to drink a lot” after their shift, especially “stressed ones,” another told The Post.
Some pilots “bid a layover to go out and drink and party,” according to an Alaska Airlines employee.
Marika Mikusova, 34, author of “Diary of a Flight Attendant,” told The Post how a co-worker made out with a captain in a Jacuzzi in her room — then told her all about it. Courtesy: Marika Mikusova
“We get together as a crew and after a day of serving customers and standing firm, everyone wants to relax and go out drinking and dining together,” he said.
“Some bid a fun stopover with lots of bars and restaurants and they go out every stopover and find a fun bar.
“I really think it’s no different than being in a fun city at home and going out with your girlfriend. We happen to be in a random city we’ve never been to, so it’s more fun to explore as a crew.”
Random drug and alcohol checks largely prevent pilots and flight attendants from unbridled revelry while on the road, but the majority of flight crew drink while off duty, he claimed.
Off-hours vacations with overworked colleagues can get a little crazy, one flight attendant admits.
“I’ve seen a lot of drinking,” an attendant for a major US-based airline told The Post. “Sometimes partying by the pool, going out to bars and so on. But as long as you have enough time before your flight, that’s allowed. Alcoholism is a problem in the airline industry.”
Hotel bars are the norm for most people, he said — or there are planes loaded with temptation in the form of drinks for passengers or duty-free sales.
“There’s also a lot of access to free alcohol if people are willing to risk their jobs to take alcohol off the plane,” he said.
“Airlines know it’s a problem.”
Messages seeking comment from major international airlines, including Alaska Airlines, were not returned.
But another flight attendant contacted by The Post insists Mike Beaton – the former British Airways pilot who was arrested when he showed up to fly still allegedly drunk and high – was taking off from another captain rather than a trade standard.
Former Emirates flight attendant Kamilia Jakubjakova (right) says most fliers in her experience are actually a tame bunch. “The reality is that many pilots are much older than the crew, married and not very attractive,” he said. Courtesy: Kamilia Jakubjakova
Kamilia Jakubjakova, a former Emirates flight attendant, now enjoys a slower pace of life in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where she runs a travel blog, Expat in Canada.
The Slovak native said it was not unusual for the captain to connect with the crew.
“This would happen off-hours or during layovers, not at work, of course,” he said, but added, “The idea of a pilot seems a little too romantic.
“The reality is that many pilots are much older than the crew, married and not very attractive.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
