Flight Attendant training at FlagShip University!

    What a thrill it was to be one out of more than 58,000 people selected to fill only 1,500 vacancies at American Airlines! The true thrill, however, began on May 4th when I arrived a day and a half early in Dallas, TX to begin the training that would change my family's life forever!
     It was late in the evening on that Saturday when I approached the check-in counter at the training center for what I expected was my room assignment for the next 8-1/2 weeks only to discover that our entire class would be staying at the DFW Hyatt Regency hotel for the duration! This was a welcome turn as the training center itself didn't seem too appealing. I lugged my bags to my room which I was to occupy for the one evening only and then immediately proceeded downstairs as I was looking forward to meeting up with a potential classmate whom I had met on facebook at the Tavern on campus. His name was +Dave  and we ended up having a wonderful time! As we saw people arriving we could tell who was beginning class with us by the fact that they were in business clothes too. We ended up inviting Colin Salmon, Jo, and the infamous Jack Butterworth over to the table and the rest was history!
     The following day was Sunday and we all looked forward to meeting the rest of our class which was to begin Monday! As people slowly filed into the lobby of the Hyatt Regency it quickly became apparent that we were no longer going to go through this experience as individuals but rather, family. Monday came and went, my nerves dissipated, and I settled into the most amazing adventure to date!
     We (the class) met our instructors, moved into our classroom, and dove right into our first aircraft which was the illustrious MD-80 (the Super 80)! After spending quite a few days on it, practicing our drills over and over (and over), and taking our exam we were done! Fully qualified! Well the remaining aircraft fell quickly in line and before we knew it, we were taking our final exam on our final aircraft and level of service, and graduating in a few days!

Made some life-long friends in training like Nic!

     Graduation came and went, we all flew to our respective bases, and the adventure TRULY began! Stay tuned for more about the adventures I've experienced since then as they'll only get exponentially better and better!

What a ride!

     Ten loooooooong months ago, +American Airlines opened the position of flight attendant up to the world to apply, and apply they did! For the first time since the tragic September 11th attacks there would be new faces at the Flagship University (a.k.a. the Charm Farm) in Dallas, Texas!
     On Novermber 5th, which was the first day applicants could apply, I with much trepidation completed the online assessment. As I was still comfortably employed as a Sous Chef and Quality Systems Manager by the French Patisserie in Pacifica, CA I honestly didn't expect much to come of the application. I heard on the news in the days following my application that American Airlines (AA in the future) had an overwhelming response to fill the meager 1,500 vacancies. At this point some 24,000 people had already applied which only furthered my resolve that nothing would come of it so I put it out of my mind.
      About two months went by with absolutely no news when all of a sudden, in mid-January, I received an email requesting I update my profile to ensure all contact information etc. was current! Well this excited me quite a bit just to hear something from AA so I sought out a forum regarding this application process. Upon discovering aforementioned forum I learned that following this email requesting updated information, another email was received scheduling a phone interview! Well sure enough I received that email and completed that interview and in my opinion totally bombed it. At this point my hopes were DEFINITELY dashed. I thought there was no way they take me after that performance. Much to my surprise however, about two months later in March I received the MUCH anticipated (according to the forum) phone call to schedule the face-to-face interview in Dallas, Texas! Well I was certainly beside myself that I had made it this far and gladly accepted their request that I join them on April 9th, 2013 (merely two days prior to my birthday)! About a week and a half prior to my flying to Dallas for the interview, I left my employment at the French Patisserie (somewhat unwillingly) so all of my chips were in on this particular hand and I knew I just had to nail it (the interview)! April 9th came, I flew to Dallas, and the interview began! I seemed to get along with not only the moderators, but definitely all of the interviewees as well (about 40 in my group). After all was said and done, I was invited to be fingerprinted which I thought was SOP (standard operating procedure), only to find out from the forum upon returning to San Francisco that that was the indication that you passed the interview and they were ready to conditionally offer you the position! Well less than 24 hours after returning home I received that conditional offer of employment and a request to schedule the medical evaluation! This medical evaluation is what I was most concerned with as I knew I had a problem with my depth perception and that was something they tested for. The forum was unclear about how much the results of that test played into progressing further which certainly didn't help my anxiety level. To be as prepared as possible, I enlisted the help of my ever-patient partner +Blake to procure some eyeglasses which I hadn't had since early in my youth. I wore them every day for the two weeks leading up to my medical evaluation when, on April 22nd, 2013, I returned to Dallas and the assessment began! It was hilarious to discover (perhaps not for +Blake who I had tormented with my stressing) that the results of the depth perception test really didn't play a role in the decision at all! After the assessment was completed and I returned home, I consulted the forum to learn how long on average it took people to hear of the decision following the evaluation. The average I learned was about three to five business days. Well, imagine my surprise when again in less than 24 hours, I received a phone call from AA inviting me to attend the training class beginning on May 6th, 2013! I gladly accepted and began feverishly studying for one of the most intensive training programs I will ever go through in my entire life as it was beginning in less than 2 weeks!
     What happened after this point was so intense and full of experiences that it certainly deserves its own post which I think you'll enjoy. It's all about training at AA Flagship University and the 8 and 1/2 weeks that would change my life forever!

First month of reserve

     This job is never short of its surprises! August 31st ushered in for me what most flight attendants absolutely DREAD about this job; RESERVE! I decided to approach it with a totally open mind so as to form my own opinion, and not allow myself to be biased or pre-disposed to hating the "unknown."

     So as to be somewhat in control of my situation and not be taken by complete surprise by getting a trip out of Newark, I decided to schlep my bags to JFK and put myself on 'short call' which essentially (but not definitively) limits crew scheduling to calling me out for just Kennedy as they have the best trips. Well it wasn't long before trips started opening up and the manager on duty told me to run down to a gate that was near departure whose flight attendant had yet to arrive! He told me to not put my bags away as she (the late flight attendant) still had a chance of making it and that if the gate agent needed to close the door, then I was going on the trip but if she showed up, then not. It wasn't until I arrived at the gate that I even knew where the trip was going. It turned out to be a 3-day trip with one layover in San Juan, Puerto Rico and another in Caracas, Venezuela!! 

     Not only was this to (potentially) be my first international trip as an American Airlines flight attendant, but I would be working with one of my classmates Gianluca! Long story short, the door closed with me on the inside and off we went! It ended up being an amazing trip and I've had several since. I have become more comfortable with this daunting job than I ever thought I would and I'm thankful to my new-hire instructors for that.