Prepping for the friendly skies

Deirdre Newman

As a flight attendant for Continental Airlines for 16 years, Pat

Anthony experienced her share of dicey situations, including a flight

that was hijacked while it was still on the ground.

For the past 24 years, Anthony has also shared her experiences with

potential flight attendants at Orange Coast College to help them know

what they are getting themselves into.

“So many people get into the travel business and aren’t aware of

anxiety, stress, relocation, etc.,” Anthony said.

Anthony recently introduced a new class of students to the field,

emphasizing the importance of a flexible personality, peripheral vision

and behavioral management skills.

“Even now, I still look at passengers around me to see what kind of

state they’re in,” Anthony said.

Anthony began the introductory class by answering students’ questions

about the job, including inquiries about qualifications, break time and

free flying.

She also logged on to some of the airlines’ Web sites to show students

how to find which airlines are hiring.

Anthony also related one of her most trying moments -- being aboard a

flight that a man hijacked just after passengers had boarded in Portland.

She was serving coffee in the rear of the plane with other flight

attendants and didn’t know that a businessman had given an attendant in

the front a note threatening to blow up the plane with nitro glyceride

unless he was taken to Vancouver. The plane was en route to Seattle and

then Hawaii.

“A German flight attendant came to the back and said, ‘Dahlings, you

won’t believe this, but we’re being hijacked,”’ Anthony said. “So we

said, ‘Should we serve more coffee?’ That’s how professional we were.”

Anthony said she and the other flight attendants tried to act

nonchalant and not alert passengers to the gravity of the situation.

Eventually, officials were able to negotiate the man off the plane.

Neither Anthony’s harrowing experience nor the events of Sept. 11 have

deterred student Shannon Hall, 18, from pursuing her dream to be a flight

attendant.

“I have no fear,” Hall said. “If I had been on the plane with the

terrorists, I would have done something. I’m a fight-back type of

person.”

Hall said she is drawn to a career in the skies mainly to be able to

travel to a variety of places and meet new people.

Another student, Shoko Nakagome, 20, is taking the class for an

entirely different reason. She wants to work in a hotel and is trying to

learn as much about the travel industry as possible.

* Deirdre Newman covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at o7 deirdre.newman@latimes.comf7 .