Are flight attendants allowed to sleep on plane?
 

The flights SFO - MIA are long, but still... 5.5 - 6.5 hrs. I was shocked to see the last row reserved for attendants to take a nap!

SFO - MIA, got water/soda only twice, after take-off and before landing.

MIA - SFO, a different crew, a different attitude.

They FA's on your flight may have worked a flight before and maybe even one after.

Depends on the agreement the airline had with the FA union for that route and how many are still active on-duty.

If an international flight is over 7 hours,there is a mandatory crew rest. My airline does not allow crew rest on domestic flights so am thinking that the flight attendants on your flight were"doing their own thing"?

In a larger body plane, I've noticed that at least 2 seats in business class are reserved for crew rest.

Usually one BE seat is for a pilot crew rest if there isn't an actual crew bunk rest area.

qantas 380s have a large compartment under economy for crew to sleep with numbers of beds.Of course this is for long haul flights viz 13 hours

There's also a pilot rest compartment behind the cockpit of the QF A380.

There are crew rest areas in all sorts of places, including on some aircraft in the hold. Being an FA is a physically demanding job, we don't know if they did a flight prior to this one or are going on to another one, we don't know anything.

On a recent flight the biz cabin had a configuration of two areas separated by the galley. Capacity was 36 passengers but there were only 7 on board. The passengers were all seated in the front of the cabin spread out and when I went to the loo I peeked in on the other cabin. I could see at least 4 seats with personal belongings strewn all over them and one flight attendant seated who happily chatted to me whilst doing a crossword. The flight attendants must of loved only having 7 people to look after as there was tons of free time to sit down and possibly snooze although I never saw anyone sleeping.

Flight attendants are staffed on planes to provide passenger safety and be available in case of a plane emergency first and foremost. The serving of passengers food/drinks are secondary.

With the decline in most airlines, passengers are lucky they get anything anymore. Being served twice on a flight is rare at least in my book. On most flights I've ever been on it was once and then ask if you need something else.

Most flight attendants are doing multiple routes, so taking a break during a long flight doesn't seem that uncalled for. I rather have them rested if a true emergercy happens than bringing me an additional beverage.

There may come a time when airlines forgo all drink/food service on flights less than so many hours in order to cut additional expenses. After clearing security, I always buy a bottle of water and sometimes food/snacks and place in my bag before boarding a plane. I don't consider Flight Attendants as my personal waitstaff while flying. They are there to keep me and the other passengers safe during the flight.

I guess a lot depends on where you live. Flying from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemisphere usually there's two meals served.

I think you mean it depends on the route you are flying, not where you live. If you fly from Europe to the US for instance, there are two meal services. On some European carriers, you get snacks in between meal services, eg a small tub of ice cream and they bring round water and orange juice on a regular basis, even in economy.

No, I meant where you live, going from Brazil, Australia or New Zealand always involves a very long haul flight.

<<<i>No, I meant where you live, going from Brazil, Australia or New Zealand always involves a very long haul flight.</i>>>

Unless you are flying to another location in Brazil, Australia or New Zealand... ;-) {sorry, too good to pass up}

"Flight Attendants are not there to serve you" I guess the attendants on the Asian airlines didn't get the memo- they provide outstanding service from the moment you board until the end of the flight. There really is no comparison - you won't find them sleeping on the job!

<i> you won't find them sleeping on the job! </i>

huh?

I took many transpacific flights with Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines. They all had a sleep break at some point, with some staying on for any needs of the passengers and then taking their turn to sleep when their rested colleagues took over. Same with Qantas flights to Australia and all overnight (whatever airline) flights to Europe.

<i>I guess a lot depends on where you live.
</i> No, it depends on where you are flying from and to as to how many meals you are served.

<i>going from Brazil, Australia or New Zealand always involves a very long haul flight.</i>
Yes and so do many other routes. It takes more than 8 hours just to fly from Moscow to Vladivostok and you are still in the same country.

<i>Flight Attendants are not there to serve you </i> Firstly that was not the statement and secondly, passenger safety is their main function and service second. Otherwise why bother putting FA's through their crew training if they are only waiting staff?

Ok OK I was making a point about Asian airlines vs. US airlines - yes on the flights over the ocean there is some rest/sleep time after all these flights are 12+ hours. But the flight attendants on Asian airlines really do serve compared to their US counterparts- could be due in part to the vast age difference (I suspect most on US airlines carry their AARP card) and in large part (in my opinion) to cultural differences. Maybe that is why the Asian airlines rank very high and the US airlines rank so low.