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EasyJet says the number of cabin crew over the age of 50 has more than doubled – with over-60s almost quadrupling – and so it has extended a new recruitment push

Budget airline easyJet is launching a new recruitment drive to hire more older workers as cabin crew.

The no-frills carrier says it follows the success of a previous initiative in 2022, with the number of cabin crew over the age of 50 more than doubling to over 600, and over-60s almost quadrupling.

With a new recruitment push for hundreds of new crew roles for 2027 set to open next month, the airline wants to encourage even more to join.

Among those to take the plunge was Francesca Hicks, 64, a former secretary and nurse for those living with dementia. She attended a taster open day, submitted her formal application, and completed a series of interviews before joining her easyJet cabin crew training course. Eighteen months on, she is now a fully trained cabin crew member and has taken to the skies over 250 times.

Francesca said: “When the opportunity to join easyJet as cabin crew came up, I jumped at the chance. I knew I already held all the skills required for the job, but it gave me another way to use my communication, organisation and interpersonal skills in a new and exciting setting.

“The reception both I and my fellow new joiners have received has been overwhelmingly positive. This, and the experiences I’ve had over the past 18 months, have given me a confidence and sense of fulfilment that I’ll take with me through the next stage of my career.”

EasyJet says the new wave of older workers has brought years of experience, and signficant enthusiasm.

It added that many people assume cabin crew is a job for younger workers, and worried they would be the oldest in the team.

Michael Brown, its director of cabin services at easyJet, said: “We want more over-50s to apply as they not only bring their existing skills to excel in a career at easyJet, but also a wealth of life experience that is appreciated by our customers and colleagues alike, which is at the heart of the fantastic service our crew are known for.”

Employment minister Andrew Western said: “Supportive employers like easyJet know the breadth of experience over-50s can bring to the workforce and it shows what can be achieved when this is valued.”

EasyJet says the increase in more over 50s had also brought a strong “culture of mentorship” amongst easyJet’s crew. Over half of its older workers surveyed said they feel like a mentor to younger colleagues.

Nearly seven in 10 crew say that travellers of all ages are happy to see different generations represented on board.

Applications open from September, with opportunities available across the airline’s UK bases.

Aug. 19 (UPI) — A study released Wednesday shows that the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea are far hotter than normal, threatening ecosystems and coastal communities.

Parts of the oceans around Europe reached more than 42 degrees Fahrenheit above average this week in a marine heat wave hitting the area.

Climate change is the cause, said the World Weather Attribution consortium in the study.

This summer has been especially brutal in Europe, which has seen multiple heat waves with extreme temperatures and worsened by wildfires. Western Europe recorded its hottest summer on record.

In the water, the high temps harm marine life, raise jellyfish populations and increase the risk of stronger storms later in the year.

“This summer, we’ve seen some really exceptional ocean temperatures around Europe,” said Catherine Gregory, a climate scientist at the University of Bern who contributed to the study, Politico reported.

“By July, the average temperature of the entire Mediterranean Sea was just over 27C [80.6 degrees Fahrenheit], which was the highest July value on record,” she added. “We’ve had a buoy reading to the west of Mallorca measuring more than 33C [91.4F] in open water … and we’ve seen similarly extreme conditions in the North Atlantic.”

The scientists analyzed four regions: the Eastern and Western Mediterranean; the Atlantic around the Bay of Biscay and Iberian Peninsula; and the seas around Ireland and western Britain.

“We find it’s the most extreme July marine heat wave conditions in the record for the Western Mediterranean, the Celtic region and for the Bay of Biscay-Iberian Peninsula region,” Gregory told Politico.

The scientists found that climate change raised temperatures in both Mediterranean regions by 35.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and Iberian waters increased by 34.52 degrees. The Irish seas rose by 34.34 degrees.

Oceans absorb most of the excess heat from burning fossil fuels. The warming waters push some species to search for cooler water, while those that can’t move, such as corals or seagrasses, could see mass die-offs.

“We have what we call winners and losers. So a lot of species wane in abundance or completely disappear while others bloom and proliferate,” said John Bruno, an ecologist from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and one of the study’s co-authors.

UK records its hottest day of the year as the temperature in west London reaches 38.1 degrees Celsius.

Millions of people across Europe, including in France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom are sweltering through another wave of extreme temperatures as the continent’s latest heatwave intensifies.

Weather agencies recorded temperatures of above 35C (95F) in several European countries on Thursday, where more than 135 million people had been forecast to endure more scorching weather.

The UK recorded its hottest day of the year as the temperature in west London soared to 38.1C (100.5F), surpassing the previous high of 38C (100.4F) in June.

Europe is the planet’s fastest-warming continent and in some places, is ill-equipped to deal with hot weather.

A series of heatwaves and drought have fuelled a summer of wildfires and been linked to thousands of deaths so far.

Scientists blame ever hotter and more frequent heatwaves on climate change caused by human activity.

Nurses, patients suffer in UK

In Britain, nurses have collapsed from heat exhaustion while working in hospitals that lack adequate cooling, the Royal College of Nursing said on Thursday.

“The heat has been unbearable here, honestly,” pharmacist Bailey Williamson told the AFP news agency. Patients in hospital were also hard-hit, said NHS worker Williamson.

“People in beds are really, really sick and they can’t even breathe because of the heat problem – so it’s really bad.”

Hospitals had recorded an increase in heatstroke cases and the NHS was struggling to keep up, he added.

“It’s scary, it’s scary,” Williamson said of the summer’s heatwaves. “I think it’s a real sign about how bad climate change has really got.”

Europe swelters

The France Meteo weather service recorded 38C (100.4F) in Paris and much of the country has been put on heatwave alert.

Similar temperatures were forecast to affect 29 million Italians, particularly along the west coast, in the Po Valley, the “heel” of the boot of Italy, as well as on the islands.

Large parts of the Iberian Peninsula were also likely to be affected, including some 25 million people in Spain.

Spain’s Aemet weather agency recorded temperatures as high as 37C (98.6F) in the centre of the country on Thursday.