Summary

  • Cabin crew remain on duty even after the service is completed, answering passenger requests and preparing for the next service.
  • During long-haul flights, cabin crew have a designated rest area where they can catch some sleep or relax in the galley.
  • Cabin crew refuel by eating their own meals or leftover passenger meals, and they prioritize staying hydrated by drinking water throughout the flight.

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Cabin crew are always busy during the inflight service when most passengers are awake. But what happens once service is over and travelers are fast asleep during a long-haul flight? What do the cabin crew do during this quiet spell? These are some of the most common things that cabin crew do when you are sleeping.

1 Remain on duty

There’s always work to be done

Once service is completed during a long-haul flight, there is often a quieter stretch of time. The lights are usually dimmed so the passengers can sleep, but there is no sleeping for the cabin crew. They remain on duty and continue their work. This means answering passenger call bells and crew calls from other galleys or the flight deck. They take out trays of drinks every hour to make sure passengers can drink water or juice during the night.

A Lufthansa cabin crew member serving food and drinks.

Photo: Lufthansa

The cabin crew will also prepare for the next service, usually breakfast. They load up the ovens and start cooking and setting up the meals and beverage carts. The galley is always kept tidy, and things are securely latched in case of sudden turbulence. They will also prepare any necessary paperwork, such as that for the bar, stock lists, or inflight reports that may be necessary.

Read More: A Day In The Life Of Long Haul Cabin Crew

2 Rest in a hidden space

A short reprieve

On a long-haul flight, the cabin crew will generally have a rest period, depending on the length of the flight. It can be around an hour or maybe up to three hours on something like a London to Singapore flight. Depending on the aircraft type, some have dedicated rest areas for the crew to catch some sleep. On some aircraft, this is a room with bunk beds, either in the tail or above or below the cabin, accessed by a locked door and stairs. Some crew rest areas are more basic, and it is just a designated row of seats at the back of the cabin with a curtain for privacy. Half of the crew go on rest, and then they swap with the rest of the crew.

Two Cabin crew members relaxing in the crew rest area.

Photo: Boeing

Some crew members make the very most of their rest and bring their own small pillows and duvet, pajamas, and a hot water bottle as the aircraft gets very cold. However, crew rest areas can be claustrophobic too, so some crew stay in the galley and rest on the jump seats with the curtain closed. Not everyone can sleep on demand, so crew rest can be just that, a little time away listening to music or watching a movie.

3 Eat and hydrate

Refuel before the next service

Depending on the airline, sometimes crew have their own meals onboard. Flight crew have separate meals that are different because if there were a case of food poisoning, only one crew member would get sick instead of all (hopefully!) The cabin crew usually have a mix of meals, usually with a vegetarian option. They decide between themselves who wants to eat what. Some cabin crew bring their own meals with them as they don’t like the taste of airline food, and it is known to have extra salt and sugar inside to make it more palatable.

An Austrian Airlines meal.

Photo: Austrian Airlines | Wikimedia Commons

On a long-haul flight, usually, there will be two meals and some snacks per crew member. There is also an option to eat any unused leftover passenger meals. The best choice for all cabin crew is to hope that there is leftover catering from business class or first class, as this is the nicest and freshest food, and you get to eat from an actual plate instead of a foil box. Of course, one of the most essential things for cabin crew is to rehydrate and drink a lot of water. Most airlines provide their staff with bottled water to drink during the flight.

Read More:

What Do Cabin Crew Eat During A Flight?

4 Galley FM

Crew like to talk

It might be surprising to some that most international long-haul cabin crew have not met each other before the flight. On the odd occasion, they might work with a crew member they might have worked with once before but it is pretty rare. They meet their new crew each time at the pre-flight briefing before the trip. The crew gets to know each other pretty quickly as they also work in quite a confined space, but in general, cabin crew are easygoing and like to get along with other people.

A group of Hainan Airlines cabin crew in the aircraft cabin.

Photo: Hainan Airlines

During a quiet spell after the inflight service, cabin crew can commonly be found in the curtained-off galley, where they will eat their crew meal and chit-chat with their colleagues. They sometimes talk about company politics but tend to keep things on the lighter side. They often talk about their previous or upcoming trips, especially if someone else has been to the destination before. They might discuss plans for the coming layover and make plans with their fellow crew members. Sometimes, there are urban myths to discuss or tales about famous people or events that have occurred on a flight. Cabin crew love to chat, and they’ll always have a story.

5 Cabin checks

We must be vigilant at all times

Even if the passengers are sleeping, the cabin crew must keep checking the cabin. They will look for anything unusual and scan the passengers and the cabin. There might be a passenger who is unwell or starting to be disruptive. There might be a strange vibration or smell that needs to be reported to the senior and the flight crew, which could indicate a severe problem.

A JetBlue flight attendant talking with a Mint business class passenger.

Photo: JetBlue

There are other necessary checks that need to be done. The flight crew must be checked upon every 30 minutes to make sure that they are OK and to see if they need anything. The lavatories are also inspected every 30 minutes to ensure that there is no waste bin fire and that the smoke detectors are not blocked, but we give them a quick clean, too. There may be limited inflight service while the passengers are sleeping, but the cabin crew will be monitoring the cabin.

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