June & July Roster

Well, here we again with another roster post. Somehow this year is just flying by and I’m barely finding the time to update my blog, although I do miss writing here! If you follow me on Instagram, you will have seen where I went in June, as I only had two flights and then went on leave.

  • LAX – Los Angeles, USA
  • IAD – Washington D.C., USA
  • Annual Leave

Although I only had two flights, they were both long ones to the US, which meant good flying hours (= good pay!) so I was happy about that. Restrictions have started to finally ease and we are now allowed out on some of our layovers, so whilst I only made it as far as In-N-Out Burger on my trip to LA, in Washington I was able to get out and about for some much awaited exploring. 

Mask rules have also relaxed in the US so it was a breath of fresh air (literally!) not having to wear a mask at all. Obviously I’m fully vaccinated but this hasn’t really meant much has changed at all in Dubai, we still have to wear masks at all times including whilst outdoors – not so fun in the 45°C heat! 

On my Washington layover we took a trip to the Great Falls in Virginia, which was an awesome day out. It felt so good to be back in nature and I loved all of the greenery. I’ll try to post about that here ASAP!

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December Roster

Welcome back to another roster post! This year has been quite different in terms of rostering, as I’m sure you’ve noticed by now. Slowly but surely, however, things are starting to get back on track a little bit and I’m actually getting a few flights when the roster comes out each month.

This November I’ve had the most flying hours I’ve had all year (well, does January/February even count as this year? It seems like another world away!), with 3 ULR (ultra long range) flights to Houston, Sydney and Chicago.

It’s made me realise just how much I miss flying, and I can’t wait for things to get back to normal, whenever that may be! On that note, my December roster looks like this:

  • SEP – Exams
  • FRA – Frankfurt, Germany
  • CAI – Cairo, Egypt (turnaround)
  • Leave
  • KRT – Khartoum, Sudan (turnaround)

Starting off the month with my yearly exams, which means it’s time to study! Once a year we have to renew our licenses and make sure we are fully updated on all safety and emergency procedures (SEP). Normally it’s two full days in training college, but due to the pandemic this year the majority needs to be done online beforehand, and then we just have one day in college for exams and some practicals.

My first flight of the month is a 48 hour layover to Frankfurt, Germany. I was there just the month before last, and as usual for all of our layovers these days, I wasn’t able to leave the hotel. I don’t anticipate things changing on that front any time soon, but you never know. I’m itching to get back out and explore, and normally Germany in December would be perfect for a visit to the Christmas markets. Sadly I think that won’t be an option this year!

Up next is a turnaround to Cairo, which is an overnight flight. Flight time should be around 3 hours each way, plus we stay on ground while the cleaners come on and prepare the aircraft for the return sector.

That leads nicely into my annual leave, which unfortunately doesn’t fall over Christmas this year. I was lucky enough to have Christmas off last year, and in our job it’s always a gamble as to whether or not you’ll be off for birthdays, Christmas and special occasions! The UAE has opened up a travel corridor with the UK, which means I’ll be able to fly home and spend time with my family without having to quarantine.

I was actually rostered a Düsseldorf layover directly after my leave over Christmas, but this has been removed, which has left me with some reserve days. I’ll try to extend my leave so I can stay home a few extra days and perhaps even for Christmas Day!

Next up is the last flight of the month, a turnaround to Khartoum, Sudan. I don’t remember ever having done this flight before, but according to the crew portal I’ve actually done it twice! It’s a fairly long day at around 4 hours flight time each way, but nevertheless I’m happy to have all the hours I can get these days.

And just like that, the final roster of 2020 is here! What a crazy year it’s been for everyone, and especially so for the aviation industry. Onwards and upwards for 2021, I think things can only get better from here!

P.s. Follow me on InstagramFacebook & Twitter for more day-to-day updates of where I am in the world! 🙂

Emirates Cabin Supervisor – A Day In The Life

I thought it might be fun to share a kind of “day in the life” post about my role as cabin supervisor. Somehow it’s been more than a year since I did my training, and I was able to finish my 6 month probation period just in time before all flights got put on hold. So I thought I’d give you a bit of an idea of what my job entails now.

Let’s start with before the flight. The same as when I was working in any other cabin, I need to make sure my cabin bag is prepped and ready to go, which means making sure my waistcoat is clean and ironed, shoes are polished, and all other items are available. One additional step I have now is charging my company provided “KIS” tablet. This is an HP tablet which is given to the seniors (pursers and cabin supervisors) for use on the flights, you can check all of the passenger information as well as lots of details about each specific destination, all of our manuals and much more. Due to the pandemic, we are currently not using our waistcoats as we are provided with single use disposable gowns, as well as masks, gloves and a visor. Out of habit I still pack my waistcoat, just in case!

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A Day out in London

A few weeks ago I flew into London Heathrow, one of the UK destinations that I haven’t visited for quite a while. Since we started flights to Stansted which is much closer to home,  I try to get that rather than LHR, but this time I was determined to go into London and meet up with my best friend Lucy, who moved there last year.

Obviously this was before the current regulations of staying home and social distancing due to the outbreak of Coronavirus, so please don’t think I’m insensitive for posting at this time – I thought it’d be a nice distraction to get back to my blog!

The weather was a grey gloomy day as I arrived in central London, however luckily the sun decided to make an appearance a bit later on. Lucy managed to take the day off work as she still had some holiday days to use up, and as it was mid-week it wasn’t too busy.

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February Roster

Another month, another roster! January is already flying by, and it’s been a fairly uneventful month so far. I did say I would try to make the most of my layovers, but most of them have been spent alternating between sleeping, working out and drinking lots of coffee!

Let’s see where next month will take me:

  • STN – London Stansted, UK
  • VIE – Vienna, Austria
  • BHX – Birmingham, UK
  • KHI – Karachi, Pakistan (turnaround)
  • FRA – Frankfurt, Germany
  • MLE – Male, Maldives (turnaround)
  • RUH – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (turnaround)
  • KUL – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • BP – Business Promotion
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First up is a trip home, which I’m very happy about! The only one of my bids that I got, and although I would have loved 2 Stansteds, I’m still grateful I get to go home and see my parents.

Following on from that is a flight to Vienna – I did bid for this in December to go and see the Christmas markets, but perhaps this time there will be some snow.

Straight after is Birmingham, which I’ve only visited once. I have been to Stratford-upon-Avon which is nearby; a beautiful quaint English town which happens to be the birthplace of Shakespeare! Highly recommended for a day trip.

Next up will be a turnaround to Karachi and back. I haven’t done this flight in a while as it is two-class, i.e. no first class, so I wasn’t rostered it while I was working in first class.

Then I have a flight to Frankfurt, which I have visited plenty of times in the past. I’m not sure what I’ll do there, as I expect it’ll be pretty chilly!

I’ve then been rostered two more turnarounds, to Male and Riyadh. Male is one of the longest turnarounds we have and it’s a pretty tiring one, as you fly through the night. The pilots also get to stay in the Maldives for 24 hours while we just go there and back! 

My last flight of February will be to Kuala Lumpur. I was actually rostered this flight in January as well, however swapped it for a quick trip to Milan. So I’m hoping for a nice flight to KL next month with some delicious street food! Someone has sent me a swap for Phnom Penh – which one would you take?

Lastly is a business promotion event – I haven’t done one of these since I started the cabin supervisor pool, so I’m very excited! I should find out soon which event I’ll be representing the company at.

So even though February is the shortest month of the year, somehow I have a very busy roster with 8 flights and a BP event! Let’s hope it’s a good one 🙂

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P.s. Follow me on InstagramFacebook & Twitter for more day-to-day updates of where I am in the world! 🙂