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Re-evaluating the function and brand image of cabin crew in 2019
July 12th 2019
From heritage uniforms to new practices. Changes at Delta, EVA, Finnair and Garuda. Read More »
In a world increasingly demanding political correctness and more flexible identity, Singapore Airlines (SIA) stands out for still calling its on-board crew “stewards” and “stewardesses”. Passengers do not hear the common U.S. aviation announcement that “flight attendants are here primarily for your safety”.
The focus is on service at SIA and at its peers. But an EVA incident appears to have pushed service too far when female crew assisted a male passenger using the lavatory. Despite the incident occurring on a 777-300ER with ample number of crew, all crew were female – as is the case for most EVA flights.
Accounts vary about the composition of EVA crew. It has been reported that it has no male cabin crew or only a handful of them who stubbornly will not retire. Only female crew had been recruited in modern times – an oxymoron of a sentence. But change is coming.
Early in the two week EVA flight attendant strike, management agreed to start hiring male cabin crew. EVA initially will train existing male employees in other divisions, such as ground crew. China Airlines has male cabin crew as does SIA, although the latter’s identity is tied to the “Singapore Girl” image.
Garuda Indonesia recently flew a special domestic flight that featured a special cabin crew uniform design that returns to a heritage kebaya design, which Garuda had until the early 1980s. The uniform is from Anne Avantie, a contemporary kebaya designer who is described on Wikipedia as a “kebaya pioneer”. Alas, it was only for a special occasion, although many responded to Garuda’s social media posts by saying it should be the new standard.
Lest anyone think a kebaya’s tradition is associated with outdated views on feminity, Avantie says her design for Garuda, Kebaya Pertiwi, was inspired by an outfit worn by Kartini, an Indonesian heroine who championed education for girls and women's rights.
Finnair has gradually changed cabin staffing on its Asian flights from some locally-based crew to almost entirely locally-based. Besides language and cultural advantages, they are cheaper than Finland-based crew. SAS has struggled with staff costs, but has long been overtaken in size by Finnair. Finnair’s Delhi flights will change its staff provider in the fourth quarter from Global Aviation to OSM Aviation, which has been responsible for crew on Finnair’s Singapore and Hong Kong flights since 2015.
Perhaps most impactful to passengers is not the look, gender or nationality of crew, but their service. On that front, Delta is making radical changes. On international flights, the traditional economy meal tray will disappear. Instead, crew will provide passengers with a cutlery packet that includes a disposable tablecloth (to the extent a tray table is a table). Passengers will select one of two starters and then one of three main dishes. Dessert is served later.
The format does away with trays and aims to increase efficiency of space while making the service more premium. There will be larger menus, welcome Bellini’s and hot towels – yes, in economy. It might also increase waste at a time airlines are crusading against single-use plastics.
What is certain is that cabin crew will have to depart from decades of the same meal service. It requires more effort since there are many small things to hand out as opposed to one single tray. A Points Guy blogger on a test flight last year said the new service was definitely improved, but took an hour longer.
The service is styled as bistro-like. It appears similar to a new economy service quietly rolled out by Saudia a year ago. Even if not totally innovative, Delta’s network is larger and the airline arguably has greater legacy weight to overcome. Some Asian airlines bemoan their economy meal service, but believe it is too great a hurdle to change crew practices without giving in to demands for higher staffing. Delta should be recognised for matching innovation with implementation.
