I’ve been a flight attendant for 20 years & know the secret to score freebies on the plane
A FLIGHT attendant has opened up on secrets of the trade and revealed how you can earn brownie points in the air to score freebies.
The flight attendant, who has been serving major airlines for two decades, said it is easier than you think to win the favor of those working on planes.
Sandra White has lifted the lid on her veteran experience serving the skies.
“You draw more bees with honey,” she said, meaning rude or impatient flyers will likely not get anything for free – especially not any “off-menu” items.
She shared several tips with Shermans Travel, ranging from how to get a free drink, how to score a better seat, and how not to be the most annoying person on the plane.
“Scoring a free beer on a flight is not all that hard,” she admitted.
According to White, there are a few reasons why she’ll give a customer a free drink, but it all comes down to one thing: being nice – really nice.
If a plane is having mechanical problems and passengers have been sitting on the tarmac for hours – without being rude – she’ll likely comp them a drink.
“I’m sure they need it,” she said.
She noted that if a flyer happens to only have cash on them, while most airlines only accept cards, she’ll just hand you the drink.
“Basically, kindness goes a long way,” she said.
And as far as a better seat goes, politely asking if there is any availability could help you to win big.
White shared that she’s more than happy to make sure a guest is as comfortable as possible.
When it comes to seats on the plane, that typically comes down to the gate agent’s discretion – but occasionally, flight attendants will send you up to first class if there’s space, and if they ask nicely.
It is not a guarantee, but it never hurts to be friendly to the person serving you peanuts.
The worst passengers, however, are those that come onto the plane having had too much fun while in the airport.
That is, flyers who are already drunk on the flight.
“Annoying drunks” are the bane of a flight attendant’s existence, according to White, thinking their funnier than they are and ordering more drinks before beverage service has even started.
White said these flyers should not even bother getting on the plane.
“I’ve only had to cut off two people – you really don’t want to make a drunk angry at 36,000 feet,” she said.
“They might defecate on the beverage cart. Yes, this really happened to a co-worker.”