Smoking on board - crew's reaction

I was on an Airtours flight once to Jamaica, and a passenger got caught smoking in the toilets. The crew's reaction was surprising. He was stressing the point that 'YOU DO NOT SMOKE IN THE CABIN'

Rules are rules and I don't smoke, but he was making us all feel guilty thanks to one passenger.

Has anyone ever experienced something like this where the crew react harshly?

[preiffer]

I'm not sure I understand why that statement was "harsh" to be honest - care to elaborate?

It's actually against the law to ignore a crewmember instruction, so I'd say their reaction was reasonable without further detail. [?]

I am confused, personally I think the offender should have been fined. What please is the point you are trying to make?[:I]

Do you mean that an strong announcement was made to the entire cabin that you do NOT smoke, making everyone a bit subdued? If so, it would further embarass the culprit and remind the rest of the flight about the law. Those not guilty (like yourself) have nothing to worry about. Maybe a bit less harsh, but with strong emphasis would have been better.

I guess it's like when the teacher used to yell at the kid next to you and you trembled as well!

Originally posted by SteveE


I guess it's like when the teacher used to yell at the kid next to you and you trembled as well!

Oh visions of GatorBaitor giving everyone a good telling off[:p][:I]

Iain

[Bazz]

I remember a flight with VS many years ago to LAX, there were a couple of teenagers in the pair of seats across from us and they were discussing smoking in the toilets and how if you put your head into the pan and flushed whilst exhaling you could smoke without the detectors being activated.

Sometime later one of them went off for a few minutes and came back very cocky, apparently having tried out their little experiment. Well the other took a single cigarette on trotted off to the toilet with it.

I got up and advised the Purser (as we called them in those days). She knocked on the door of the cubicle occupied by the offending pax and got them to open up, the smoke detector did actually go off during this activity, I assume the interruption spoilt the plan?

They were both given a very severe telling off in front of all around, the intention being to embarrass them to the hilt, inconsiderate, irresponsible, safety issues, etc., etc., ...nothing more than they deserved in my IMHO.

It wasn't like they were nervous flyers and were gasping for a fag, they just thought they were being clever; bucking the system.

Now I don't smoke but I do not have a problem with people who do. I am not anti-smoking. However where matters of safety are concerned such as on an aircraft, I would come down on offenders very heavy, a ban from the airline or flying altogether would not be too severe in my book!

Just my tuppence worth.

I would guess that anyone caught smoking on an aircraft could, in theory, be arrested on arrival and charged with "endangering an aircraft" (or the local equivalent of this charge). After all, an improperly disposed of cigarette end could cause a fire onboard.

Airlines should treat ignoring the onboard smoking ban the same way you get treated if you use "those 7 words" at check-in. ("I've got a .... in my bag") You generally get arrested & banned for life from the airline in question.

Ho Ho the jokes:

- My sister was smoking on the way to the Carribean
- Jamaica?
- No she wanted to smoke

!!

Bearing in mind it was en-route to Jamaica maybe the crews annoyance was more about what the passenger was smoking and the fact that they couldn't do the same.

Phil

Originally posted by preiffer
I'm not sure I understand why that statement was "harsh" to be honest - care to elaborate?

It's actually against the law to ignore a crewmember instruction, so I'd say their reaction was reasonable without further detail. [?]

The way I read it between the lines is that the entire plane was subjected to a collective telling off in much the same way as school kids are by using one person as an example. I find this kind of treatment disappointing: I remember a similar thing happening regarding one pax's cellphone going off prior to takeoff during taxiing when the crew gave everyone a telling off for the actions of one person.

On a similar vein, I remember many years ago on a Delta flight once when I was in the loo and the smoke alarm started going off intermittently, and no I wasn't smoking. I went to an FA to explain that I thought there was a faulty smoke alarm, only to get a right royal b*ll*cking. It took a while for the FA to realise that I had not been smoking. Never got an apology either. Another reason not to travel Y.

Cheers, Howard

I have heard that airlines have a sort of "blacklist" where pax that have, for example, repeatedly ignored smoking warnings can have their names written and then it is very difficult for them to book a flight on any airline?[:?] Is this true or just a case of "Galley FM";)

VS.

Many year ago, I went into the toilet to find smoke coming from the waste bin. I got one of the cabin crew who grabbed bottles of water and put it out. There were two points. Firstly that a quick smoke really is dangerous. Fire on board planes (and boats which I am more familiar with) is the number 1 fear. The cabin crew was absolutely white with fear and anger, and I don't blame her. Second, she assumed, wrongly, that it was me that was the guilty party. Interestingly my reaction at the false accusation was that I didn't mind. Of course I denied it. But her reaction was understandable given the strength of her emotions at the time, and in her eyes I looked like I had been caught red handed.

So if an announcement was made to re-emphasise the point, I would say fair enough. It really is that serious.

Originally posted by SteveE
Do you mean that an strong announcement was made to the entire cabin that you do NOT smoke, making everyone a bit subdued? If so, it would further embarass the culprit and remind the rest of the flight about the law. Those not guilty (like yourself) have nothing to worry about. Maybe a bit less harsh, but with strong emphasis would have been better.

I guess it's like when the teacher used to yell at the kid next to you and you trembled as well!

Yes that's what I was meant. Totally agree with Howard Long as well, the cabin crew made us all feel guilty like school kids because of one person who couldn't wait any longer for a cigarette and ended up getting caught.

Fortunately there was no repeat on the return journey meaning I was able to get some sleep.

I wonder what actually happened to that passenger because I can't remember seeing any security people or the police waiting for him on arrival at MBJ.

I've not flown Airtours/MyTravel since, and with no desire to do so in the future unless I really have to (not because of the smoking incident, it was generally down to the poor level of service/IFE)

Regardless, I don't think anyone or anything gives Cabin Crew a God-given right to abandon all sense of manners and social norms. They are just sinking to the same level as the person smoking in the lav. Are we back to school-yard behaviour in every walk of life now?

While the no-smoking rules should be obeyed, any rebuke should be reserved for the persons who broke the rule. The whole aircraft shouldn't be subjected to a lecture... Just a simple "If you're wondering what the bleeping was, a person was caught smoking in the toilet. Please remember that this is a non-smoking aircraft" would do the trick.

There shouldn't be any anger from the crew. If the crew member can't suppress anger, they are in the wrong job. At all times, crew should be seeking to defuse such situations rather than try and escalate a conflict, regardless of the butterflies they might have in their stomach.

Is it just me, or are the amounts of uncalled for rudeness and sarcasm from crew toward pax actually on the increase? (This is a general observation, nothing specific about VS.)

It seemed to get worse since 9/11, with all the additional "security paranoia". Air crew have become more like grim jail-warders, rather than genial hosts.

(I have to say, that hasn't permeated to the Southern Hemisphere yet. Qantas still seem to have a nice welcoming attitude. I might just blame Ryanair instead. Or chav-ism. Or something.)

Mike