‘I’m a flight attendant – men act way more entitled on planes than women do’

A flight attendant has revealed that male passengers are far more "entitled" than their female counterparts. She claims she's seen plenty of blokes claim upgrades and leave their wives in economy without a backwards look!

Kimberly, 59, from Philadelphia, in the United States, works based out of JFK airport. She’s a purser with American Airlines and has been with the company for almost 30 years.

The long-term flight attendant has flown all over the world for work including Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Tel Aviv, Delhi, São Paulo, Los Angeles and San Francisco. But, while she loves her job, Kim does find some passengers annoying or entitled.

READ MORE: 'I've seen disgusting things as a flight attendant from bags of urine to cheese feet'

In her opinion, women are rarely as selfish as men when flying as she claims they’re more generous to their companions.

She told Daily Star: "Business travellers rack up a lot of miles because of work, so they tend to redeem them when it’s time to go on vacation. If they only have enough for one upgrade, I have seen the husband take the upgrade and then try everything to either get the wife upgraded for free, or ask us to take a glass of wine or dessert back to wife. I rarely see it in the other direction, but what women will do is ask if they can switch from time to time."

However, Kim says it doesn’t stop there. People are often "entitled" when flying. She noted:"The entitled passenger will have no problem asking for something from another cabin, and then tell you 'do you know who I am'.

"The silliest was a man who melted down because he couldn’t have the ice cream from first class in business class. I asked why he wanted the ice cream. ‘Are you allergic to the ice cream in business’?

"His answer…’No I prefer the ice cream in first’. And when I explained that it was not available, he told me that my customer service skills were poor. I told him that my skills are exemplary, 'you just don’t like being told no'."

Speaking about entitled passengers, she added: "Another problem is when I have to make the decision to cut a passenger off if they have had too much alcohol. For some reason they think we don’t talk to each other so that everyone is on the same page.

"So they will ask everyone for a drink, and become frustrated when we all say no."

However, that’s not as bad as it gets. The life of a flight attendant isn’t always peaceful.

Kim told the Travel team: "The worst passengers are the ones that are abusive to the flight attendants. I have returned to the gate and have them removed. There is nothing worse than to be 36,000 feet with a problem."

Thankfully, some passengers are better than others. Kim noted: "The funniest passengers are the celebrities want to announce themselves, by saying ‘I don’t wish to be disturbed by fans today, could you let the rest of the staff know’. I told him ‘not a problem, but who are you that anyone would want your autograph?’

"Of course I know who they are, but if you are going to go that far to be noticed…"

Thankfully, not all passengers are an issue. Kim has had some lovely holidaymakers in her time.

She explained: "One of the nicest things that I have had happen was on a flight to Ecuador. That country is known for their roses, and one of my coworkers told me to definitely make sure I bring some back.

"So I strike up a conversation with a couple of passengers and ask how much should I pay. One of the gentlemen asked about colour, how many, etc. I told him I have no idea, I just wanted to pick some up.

"Turns out I was speaking to a rose importer, and he showed up to our hotel the next morning with three boxes of beautiful roses, 50 stems in each box, of the most gorgeous roses I have ever seen….and they didn’t cost one dime.

"Another perk is I have to be exposed to some of the wonders of the world and it doesn’t cost me a thing. On a layover in Athens, as I am looking at history, I pinch myself because my job allows me to see all of this.

"Or I can pick up a trip and end up spending the day at an all inclusive in Mexico, or taking a tour of the remains of Pablo Escobar’s demolished home in Columbia. All in a day's work!"

Would you love to be a flight attendant? Tell us in the comments…

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