A United airlines flight attendant has sparked significant backlash after sharing a Paris layover story online. She and her fellow crewmembers left a junior flight attendant behind at Charles de Gaulle Airport. Rather than feeling bad about this, she criticized the colleague for being “cheap” and bringing her own food which caused them to separate.
While she doesn’t identify her employer, they flew Newark – Paris. The junior flight attendant asked to store a sandwich and yogurt she purchased the night at the grocery in the plane’s chilled storage, explaining that “Paris is so expensive.” She didn’t know if there was space, so it sounds like she doesn’t work this aircraft often.
When the flight landed on the other side of the Pond, the crew hurried to deplane and board their van to the layover hotel.
After exiting the aircraft, the junior flight attendant realized she had forgotten her food and briefly went back to retrieve it. In the short time it took her to do this, the other crew members had already boarded the van and departed for their hotel.
The oversight was realized only when the van driver received a call from a gate agent alerting them that one flight attendant had been inadvertently left behind.
- The TikTok creator, recounting the story in her viral video, emphasized it wasn’t her responsibility to collect or remember her colleague’s food, suggesting instead the moral of the incident was to avoid being “cheap.”
- She implied that buying basic food items like a sandwich and yogurt in Paris wouldn’t cause financial hardship, she could ‘still pay her rent’ and it was her fault for economizing.
We land, we deplane, we grab our things to leave the airplane, to get on the van to go to our hotel. As we’re walking up the jet bridge, the flight attendant asks me, ‘did you get my food?’ No, why would I get your food? I’m not here to get your food.
…The purser looks at all the crew members and says, ‘if you’re not here, raise your hand,’ to which I laughed at.
@life.with.oatmeal Storytime. Cheap flight attendant was left on the plane in Paris. #lifewithoatmeal #storytime #paris #flightattendant ♬ original sound – Life With Oatmeal
Mostly flight attendants reacting to the video online are appalled, suggesting this woman “doesn’t have your back” and isn’t someone they’d want to fly with. The first rule is never leave a crewmember behind.
One Mile at a Time‘s take is, “The moral of the story should be to make sure everyone is accounted for before driving to the hotel. Instead, this woman’s conclusion is to not be cheap.”
Paddle Your Own Kanoo thinks that “[f]or a US-based flight attendant, a layover in Paris is not expensive” though I think that misses the point. If you’re junior crew, your pay isn’t very much, so you’re likely trying to save as much of your per diem as possible to cover regular expenses. Ultimately he concludes that “there is a collective responsibility amongst all the crew, and especially the purser, to ensure that all the crew members are in the van and no one has been left behind.”
My take here is a little bit different. If the rest of the crew were not going to wait, then they had a responsibility to communicate that so that the flight attendant could decide whether to go back for their food and fend for themselves for transportation, or stick with the group. That was the major fail.
They didn’t count the crew. “Raise your hand if you’re not here” is obviously careless. This flight attendant had just spoken with their junior colleague at the end of the flight. She clearly knew they weren’t all together. Blame it on an overnight flight, but that comes off as disingenuous when she’s explaining why it’s actually not her responsibility to keep track of other flight attendants.
A senior F/A makes considerably more than a junior F/A who may be trying to cut layover expenses in a high dollar city like Paris. Totally unprofessional for the Lead Purser to leave anyone unaccounted for on departing either the airport or the hotel. If the Flightdeck crew were on the same van (which nowadays may not be the case) I’m surprised the Captain (I certainly did) didn’t watch out for his crew since the overall responsibility rests with him!
Moral of the story: Teamwork makes the dream work.
She’s obviously a junior flight attendant with minimal international experience (at least in Europe). The TicTok-er putting this amount of energy into mocking her does not speak to the esprit de corps necessary during a normal flight, much less during an emergency.
Posting that video, apparently thinking it was a positive reflection on herself, tells me everything I need to know about that person’s moral compass.
Is it legal to import food into France? I know that doing so into the US would be a Customs violation. I believe the import of meat & dairy products are prohibited into France.
Hmm. Bringing a sandwich with certain fillings may not be acceptable. I think. Otherwise the whole scenario seems off. I always suspicious about social media posting like this.
Teamwork makes the dreamLiner work.
clearly being unionized didn’t fix or eliminate the problem
and, French customs and agriculture might be a bit more attentive to US FAs than they have been.
They left her behind. Suck it up and move on. They’re not very nice colleagues but this feels like a victimless crime here…said the hardcore Gen x’er.
There is no excuse, whatsoever, for this nasty, crude, and abusive behavior. Given the ignorant and disingenuous excuses offered by this woman, and the cruel question by the other flight “attendant” it would come as no surprise that this is usual behavior. This is my opinion only and others may disagree.
@ Gary — If she worked for DL, none of this woud be a problem since they pay so well. Rolleyes…
She looks exactly as I imagined.
@.Dot don’t disagree with, but not sure I’m aligned with what’s implied. Personally, while I think the behavior of the FA mocking her colleague was rude, it’s not abusive and labeling it as such only contributes to America’s snowflake culture.
One could argue that it was the junior FA that was rude and selfish. She was willing to delay 10 of her colleagues getting to their hotel and going to sleep after working all night. And this would not be a small delay. It also delays the shuttle form moving in to its next assignment, delaying those people.
If the junior FA is adult enough to be entrusted with the safety of the souls on the airplane she’s adult enough to find her own way to the airport after making a choice to go back for less than $10 worth of food. To complain about it is just as selfish and unprofessional as what the other FA did.
There are two sides to every story. Neither side is entirely the victim here.
Fly the Friendly Skies
Next time they’ll give the junior flight attendant the “David Dao” treatment.
The gal that made the video is one that is always late for pickup. The crew waits for queen Latisha, and when she finally boards the van she says nothing to the Captain and the rest of the crew.
I thought they left her in the jetway and headed back to Newark one FA short!
Yeah, of course buying some food in Paris won’t bankrupt them. So what? Bringing your own lunch is an excellent way to save money. Some people, no matter how much they’re making, just keep increasing their spend and wonder why they are just treading water financially (or have taken out loans etc. and in fact are in debt). Some don’t. Kudos to the junior F/A for trying to stay in the second group.
If this is how flight attendants treat each other, imagine how they treat the passengers?
@hwertz totally agree. Kudos to anyone trying to be responsible with their resources. I respect that. Where it gets tricky is striking the balance between something you value versus something I value. In the case of this thread: I might value saving money in food, while Tammy values getting to the hotel and going to bed.
Who’s “value” matters more? If we could solve for this I suppose we could solve for Karens, cancel culture, fragile masculinity, melting snowflakes and everyone else with The Vapors.
The US carrier I work for, this would NEVER happen. The 5 minutes she took to get her FOOD is nothing. We take care of each other because the companies sure won’t.
We actually have a strict rule we are not allowed to leave the airport/hotel until everyone is accounted for.
@ CHRIS — You are aracist. Not imagined. Did you stop using your David R Miller handle?
@gene it wouldn’t have happened at DL because most crews who work international flights are senior talk to junior crew and look out for them. It has nothing to do with pay. Junior fas at ANY airline barely make anything. Just say you don’t like dl leave it at that cause you definitely sound like a bitter hater
Nigel Long says:
Nice way to avoid the real issue. What a gem you are!
I would call this toxic work attitude and juvenile actions!! Totally uncalled for. . .
If this is the way this young lady treats her fellow crew members, I can only imagine how she treats her passengers. I worked flights for several years on international lines to Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. This person’s attitude would have never been tolerated by the company for which I worked.
Yes, a simple cup of coffee and a croissant or pastry in France could put a pretty good dent in the F/A’s per diem, let alone eating in places like Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, or Jeddah SA turnarounds between there and Nigeria when I worked hadj flights. You bet I brought food in my suitcase! It subsidized my base pay, and living in NYC, I needed all the help I could get!
This is the most poorly written story I’ve ever read. Did AI produce it? I don’t even know which airport the Jr FA got stranded in, if that indeed is what happened.
Mean Girl attitude.
So the people making more money mock the person making less? Classy!
What an ugly and evil bitch
The Venn diagram of “the dumbest bitches from your 10th grade class who never mentally got beyond gym class social dynamics” and “flight attendants” is a circle.
Everyone has that has had a job has worked with an A$$hole. Hopefully carma catches up with the purser in the future.
Typo:
“ If you’re junior crew, your pay is very much, ”
Should probably read:
“If you’re junior crew, your pay isn’t very much, so “
As a former F/A long retired, this brings back some sour memories…
Junior F/As don’t have the seniority to hold a regular schedule of international flights. This “sandwich gal” obv trip-traded her way to land this flight assignment.
Imagine having to spend SO many hours trapped in a small galley space or sharing a jumpseat with women who DETEST you simply for being 20+ years younger than they are. It’s a sad fact of life that pure jealousy inspires such cruelty.
New F/As are paid VERY little. The mindset seems to be “you’re doing this for the travel – THAT’s your pay!” We crammed 4 of us into a very tiny apt, just to make our monthly bills & have a place to sleep between trips. It’s not “being cheap”; it’s existing in survival mode.
Luckily, there were far more kind hearts on the domestic routes I stuck with… women & men who realized (even decades ago) that we’ll only climb towards equality & fairness TOGETHER. We should have each other’s backs, NOT stick proverbial knives in them.
I’m an old broad myself now. One who nurtures the generations behind mine, rather than acting so cut-throat towards them that they develop an aversion to older folks.
We need to teach KINDNESS to our kids. Maybe then, the world could finally become a better place.
Surely the rude females are minority group members. Never trust a ginger.
Oh, and to the person above who thinks “ALL F/As* are a bunch of “stupid 10th grade” bullies… might that comment have been a bit of *projection*?
Be sure *not* to share such thoughts with your future flight crews. Esp If you *ever* have *any* kind of flight emergency. Whether it’s using AED equipment to save you from a heart attack or a deadly allergic reaction, delivering your child/grandchild (should mama fly too late in pregnancy, against medical advice) or dragging your butt off a burning plane (even if you’ve frozen up in a state of negative panic), guess WHO has been trained to do ALL of those things: the “sky waitress/waiter” you sooooo disrespect.
Know that the reason you carry such attitudes has exactly *zilch* to do with the F/As, or anyone else who serves you. Instead, someone raised you so *poorly* that you never developed the ability to view or treat others fairly OR kindly, unless there was something in it for YOU. It’s a form of narcissism, really.
Other people, according to that mindset, are merely “tools” to be used, broken & replaced. It’s easy for a malignant person to dehumanize others, the way you did in your comment. After all, we’re merely “supplies”, needed by the most fragile egos so they can feel better about their own choices & lives… a way to place themselves “above” others.
But that’s simply an illusion, honestly. After all, there’s eons of proof that helping others, being fair & showing kindness is what elevates humanity, *not* mistreatment or degradation. Become more aware of what you’re building, and you’ll get better results.
Still, it’s such a common condition. It’s typically the byproduct of long-ago abuse, delivered at a time when a helpless child’s psyche was still forming. It’s also the main reason why public-facing jobs can become enormously challenging. It explains the high turnover rates. NO one likes being abused, or disrespected. So, maybe knock that stuff off. Those around you will be happier. And, just maybe, you will be, too.
Truly stable, secure folks DON’T need to devalue others in order to feel whole or good about themselves. Just thought I’d clue you in to that TRUTH. Good luck absorbing it.
As a fellow professional in the skies I can say this story is full of half truths and misleading information. It’s easy to see this from a mile away…….“ After exiting the aircraft, the junior flight attendant realized she had forgotten her food and briefly went back to retrieve it. In the short time it took her to do this, the other crew members had already boarded the van and departed for their hotel” In the short time let’s assume 2 – minutes?, The other crew members boarded the van? So how much time does it take to get to the van? 5 minutes – Hah not even close. Some airlines in Paris board the BUS not VAN at the gates which is quicker but then the whole crew goes through Immigration where a manifest is presented and crew members counted…..Also the Van driver does a head count esp. in the later case. Why doesn’t the writer take in to consideration the young crew members whole story and verify if it is even plausible. My Guess is that the truth is on the “other side of the room” from this article. Always consider the source. I don’t know of a single instance in 25 years of flying (15 internationally) that this has happened and I doubt seriously that a crew would just leave a junior employee to fend on their own. Every time we leave the airplane we ask “are we all here”.
It’s hard for flight attendants to feel important when they spend most of their time picking up other people’s trash. To avoid the feeling of the world’s trash man, sometimes flight attendants chose to pick on anyone they can poorly justify a reason in her/his mind to make themselves feel better.
United Senior FAs are the rudest most nasty divorced bitter ‘people’ on the planet. They treat PAX and deadheading crew the same way. I’m glad this was made public. Shame on them for being so heartless.
Other than the junior FAs feeling being hurt was there any REAL harm caused? No. This is a nothing burger. The senior FA is not a nice person. The junior FA got called out for thinking only of herself. Both sides share in the situation
wow, no team work over at United! everyone for themselves?
and just an FYI a new hire FA makes so little money that a meal in Paris can very much break the bank. new hires make an average of $33,000.
Unless the junior was reserve, my read is the tiktokker feels this is fair game since the junior bought the route.
What a shabby mean girl this FA Hope is.
She knew exactly what she was doing and that the junior FA would be left behind. She should be demoted.
Food isn’t the issue. The purser didn’t do their job checking that all crew members were present.