Or you might try helicopters................
Posted on 08/04/2023 5:22:34 AM PDT by Red Badger
When a video of an American Airlines pilot scolding his passengers during a pre-flight announcement went viral, some people deemed it patronizing.
Others, including a Harvard University expert, are hailing the pilot’s speech as an example of strong leadership — at a time when passengers desperately need it.
“I say bravo to the American Airlines pilot. He has every right to do that. He’s the captain of the flight, and he’s in charge of what happens,” Bill George, an executive fellow at Harvard Business School and author of “True North: Emerging Leader Edition,” tells CNBC Make It. “If something goes wrong, he has the obligation to go back to the nearest airport and land ... and no passenger likes that.”
In the video, which started circulating last week, the pilot set some ground rules for his passengers — including what they should expect from their flight attendants, and how they should treat each other during the journey.
“Remember, the flight attendants are here for your safety. After that they’re here to make your flight more enjoyable,” the pilot said. “They’re going to take care of you guys but you will listen to what they have to say because they represent my will in the cabin, and my will is what matters.”
A post shared by Anna Leah Maltezos (@lone_didion)...View this post on Instagram..................
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The pilot added: “Be nice to each other. Be respectful to each other. I shouldn’t have to say that ... But I have to say it every single flight, because people don’t. And they’re selfish and rude, and we won’t have it.”
He told passengers to store their bags properly, avoid leaning or falling asleep on other people, and use headphones instead of playing audio out loud on speakers.
Lastly, the pilot acknowledged the plight of the people in middle seats: “Middle seaters, I know it stinks to be in the middle ... You own both armrests. That is my gift to you. Welcome on board our flight.”
A great example of leadership, but not a one-size-fits-all strategy
The speech — “a little bit of fatherhood,” as the pilot deemed it — serves as a counterpoint to a bevy of recent videos depicting outbursts aboard aircrafts. Airlines have seen a significant uptick in unruly passenger reports: nearly 2,500 last year and 6,000 in 2021, compared to roughly 1,200 in 2019 and less than 1,000 in years prior, according to Federal Aviation Administration data.
The FAA has referred more than 250 of those cases to the Federal Bureau of Investigations since 2021, a move reserved for particularly violent incidents, the Wall Street Journal reported in April.
Given that backdrop, George applauds the pilot, noting that commercial airline captains “have the right to do these things.”
It’s not a one-size-fits-all leadership approach, he adds: “In the office, it’s more nuanced. You’re not dealing with a situation that might put people in physical harm, or could be potentially dangerous.”
CEOs and bosses have “the right to set some standards of behavior,” but scolding lectures in that kind of setting typically only make employees feel undervalued and underappreciated, George says. That could contribute to staffers “quiet quitting” their jobs — or even actually quitting.
Instead, if you’re struggling with a respect-in-the-workplace problem, talk directly with the people involved to get their perspectives and craft a more personalized, empathic solution.
“Expressing genuine empathy for someone’s circumstance and being able to walk in their shoes is an essential quality of all leaders,” George said in a 2015 interview with psychologist Daniel Goleman. “It’s the key element.”
I flew AA a couple of weeks ago. The entire process was a customer service nightmare. While this pilot is correct, it’s amusing having them chide people for being disrespectful. He must have made that announcement before sitting on the tarmac for an hour in Phoenix…and then telling us the plane was broken. And then not giving passengers ANY information.
hehehe... middle seaters, you own both armrests... that’s a good one.
The triumph of the will!
See my tagline. LOL
People sometimes forget that once a plane leaves the ground, the Pilot of the plane is the same as a Captain of a ship at sea.
It must be so. People’s lives may depend on it.
I am perfectly fine with a Pilot giving this lecture. Sad that it has to be given, but there it is.
Flyin this mornin. Wish I were drivin instead.
I quit flying after TWA went under. Best airline ever.
Anyone who acts the fool on a plane should be banned from flying for good. Period...
I strongly applaud the Captains remarks
The C in PIC is COMMAND.
Kinda why I quit and went back to bizjets.
I quit flying after they started strip searching old people and handicaps after 9-11.
He’s the captain of a flying cattle car.
I stopped flying when passengers became cargo.
Or you might try helicopters................
That may be the point, but even ships carry cattle!
But, I get your views on flying. Used to love flying. Now, when I have to, it is a stressful chore, not something to enjoy.
I used to travel a ton for work. Airlines have been going down hill for decades. My driving radius kept expanding towards the end of my career. The radius expansion was calculated based on drive time vs. expected arrival time by plane. There was a time that I would take a 20 minute flight to Dulles instead of driving two hours. Security plus delayed flights and the general hassle of flying eliminated that rather quickly. Eventually, the radius was extended to Manchester, NH in the north and the NC/SC border in the south.
One other thing. I don’t like being served by faggot and fat stewardesses. The last thing I want to see when I am traveling is fat, ugly and lazy stewardesses that bump into me with their wide bodies when I am on an aisle seat.
I’m sure the same pilot will refuse to board his next flight that he is aware has an issue that can not be resolved for hours.
Everyone on the chain responsible for that nonsense of boarding and closing the door for that “on time departure” that then sits on the tarmac for more than 30 minutes should be charged with kidnapping.
If I never set foot in another airport I will die happy.
People need to remember how to be decent to each other. The internet has allowed people to be disgusting and self centered as they hide behind user names.
You never flew Midwest Express . . .
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