A flight attendant from Concord, North Carolina, is irritated by a word she must use often in her work: deplane, meaning “to leave an aircraft.” She knows this verb is effective and efficient, but she says that to her it seems inelegant, noting that...
The slang term sky hag was originally a negative appellation for an older flight attendant. But it’s now being reclaimed by longtime airline employees as a positive self-descriptor. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Sky Hag” I...
We often hear that English is going to hell in a handbasket. Actually, though, linguistic handwringing about sinking standards and sloppy speech has been going on for centuries – at least as far back as the 1300’s! And: language also changes to fit...
It turns out the creativity of flight attendants doesn’t stop with the pre-takeoff safety demonstration; they have slang for all kinds of fun stuff, from the lipstick they apply before passengers deplane (landing lips) to the “2-for-1 special,”...
What do flight attendants call that point in takeoff preparations when they walk up and down the aisle to make sure seatbelts are securely fastened? It’s the crotch watch, also known as a groin scan. The expression flying dirty refers to when the...
Your telephone is for talking, right? Or is it? We’re guessing it’s been a while since you sat next to a telephone waiting for it to ring. In fact, maybe you’re one of those people who HATE to see that voicemail message light blinking. But for many...
