Woman’s Day: 7 Things Your Flight Attendant Wants You to Know

Check out the May issue of Woman’s Day Magazine!  On page 158  I offer a few travel tips….

Skymall introduces self-imposed restraint hoodies for kids – on the airplane.

Have fun AND restrain little ones from banging on the tray table with this King Cobra Hoodie from Skymall! ($39.95-$41.95)  It’s a little pricey, I know, but kids will love it.  Mine does!  Just ignore that hissing sound coming from the row behind you.  Sorry I can’t tell you where to find the matching straight? pants, but these faux tool lounge pants ($19.99) are kind of…cool?  Okay fine, they’re not!  But I’m obsessed.

For my bargain shoppers - AMAZON:  King Cobra Hoodie ($24.99-$29.99

Can passengers read pornography in flight?

From time to time I get questions from readers who want to know what the rules are regarding viewing pornography in flight now that Wi-Fi is available on board most airplanes. Thankfully, it hasn’t been much of an issue (knock on wood). But planes are crowded, personal space barely exits, and when passengers do things they shouldn’t, well, they usually get caught.

Last week on a flight from New York to Fort Lauderdale, a coworker had to ask a 10-year-old boy to turn off the erotica and to fasten his seatbelt. On either side of him sat his younger brother and sister. Across the aisle were his parents who had no idea what was going on until we informed them why he may have been holding the computer screen so close to his face. On a different flight another passenger was caught reading a PlayboyMagazine. Next to him sat his young son. What gave this man away was the opened centerfold he was eyeing up and down. When a flight attendant politely asked him to put it away, he yelled at her for embarrassing him.

How common is it to see someone watching something rather risqué on a laptop, iPad, tablet or even the in-flight entertainment system in the air? I can only think of a few instances I’ve seen something that might raise a few eyebrows. When this happens, I’ll gently inform the passenger that there are children on board and remind them that other passengers seated nearby might find what they’re viewing distasteful. Nine times out of ten they’ll either fast forward through the scene or turn it off – end of story.

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[Photo courtesy: Bekathwia]

Flight attendants: The good, the bad, and the not so ugly world of flying

The Azumano Travel Show, a weekend travel radio show on KPAM out of Portland, Oregon, had me on the air last week to discuss my book,  Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 feet - and what’s it’s like, really like to be a flight attendant.  You can listen by clicking the links below.

Azumano Travel Show: Heather Poole (Part One): Celebrities, traveling with kids, the mile high club, naked passengers

Azumano Travel Show: Heather Poole (Part two): What kind of person makes a good flight attendant, how flying has changed over the years

Why children are annoying on airplanes

This post originally appeared on Businessweek.com  …

Low-cost Malaysian airline AirAsia (AIRA:MK) has finally done what many disgruntled passengers have long hoped for: It has banned children from sections of some airplanes. Starting in February, the first seven economy rows on its long-haul AirAsia X flights will be designated as the “quiet zone” and reserved for adults (well, people over the age of 12) to give passengers a chance to rest during the flights. Malaysian Airlines is also in the process of creating a child-free zone on certain flights. But are children really the worst offenders on airplanes? For an answer, Bloomberg Businessweek turned to Heather Poole, who has chronicled her 17-year career as a flight attendant for a major airline in her book Cruising Attitude.

So are children really that annoying on flights?

Well, first, let me say: I have a six-year-old, so I’m on Team Mom with this one. You can tell when passengers haven’t had kids because they’re less patient. They can get upset just by the thought of having to sit next to a child. That said, kids can be really disruptive on flights. But usually when that happens, it’s not the kid’s fault; it’s the parents’. Not long ago, I had a family come on board and their little girl threw temper tantrum in the middle of the aisle. The parents looked at me and just laughed. I’m like: ‘Can you move your child? I’m trying to board the plane.’

I see parents come on a plane with nothing to entertain their child, so then the kid gets bored and starts kicking the seat in front of them. Sometimes parents will sit in first class but leave their kids in coach. The kids will be standing in the aisle during takeoff or trying to get out of their seats.

Really? Parents really pay that little attention to their kids?

A long time ago I was on a flight—I wasn’t working, I was just flying like a regular passenger—and I felt something between my legs. I looked under my seat and there was a baby. I turned around behind me and the mom was sleeping. I tapped her on shoulder and said, ‘I think this is yours,’ and she took the baby and closed her eyes again. She had no idea that I was a flight attendant; to her I was just a random stranger who’d gotten ahold of her baby.

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Photo of the day: Sick and tired of all the nickel and diming, Mindy decides to save a dollar by skipping the “napkin fee”

Photo courtesy of Steven Pam

Quote courtesy of @IanHMoore

Photo of the day: Fly safe with the all new passenger turbulence protection kit.

Photo courtesy of Heather Poole

Caption courtesy of Phil

Thanksgiving holiday travel (photo): Of course it will fit in the overhead bin!

Let the madness begin…

Road Trip (Video): Are we there yet?

The drive from Los Angeles to Convict Lake takes about…oh…SIX HOURS!  But that includes a stop for lunch and another quick stop for beef jerky.  Convict Lake is located directly across from the Mammoth airport.  A short drive up the mountain and you’re there.

Photo of the day: Their flying power depleted by Kryptonite, superheroes Timmy and Jimmy catch the red-eye flight to Washington…

Photo Courtesy of Ian McIntyre

Caption Courtesy of Estella Eguino