Living and loving out of a suitcase

Mumbai: Quick relationships, quicker break-ups, problems with adjusting to partners who pursue other professions and, sometimes, even bigger problems when adjusting to those within the same fraternity. These are some of the personal challenges that those who work for airline flight crews face.
Living out of a suitcase can lead to an “indisciplined” lifestyle and a lot of stress, say cabin crew and cockpit staff. It also leads to break-ups in relationships.
Since most of a person’s time is spent with colleagues rather than family and friends, a lot of relationships-both short and long term-mushroom very quickly.
“It is hard to develop a relationship with someone who is not a flight crew member. People from other professions might not be as receptive to the clock we follow,” said an airhostess for Jet Airways. “Relationships within the industry usually develop very quickly but fail to stand the test of the stress this profession creates. This is because bonds develop for no other reason than you may happen to be staying at the same place for several days,” the flight attendant added. She said she hardly gets 10 days a month to be with family and friends.
However, crew members said that while there are instances of successful relationships developing, they are much fewer than the bonds that snap. “Couples may grow close in an unusual setting, but later break up when they learn more about a person’s habits or the way they deal with colleagues,” said a Kingfisher flight attendant.
Pilots and flight attendants may also meet regularly over a particular shift, but face problems finding time together when schedules change.
19/03/09 Chinmayi Shalya/Times of India