My first experience with "Clear Air Turbulence" was on the beloved Convair 580 turbo prop! I was in my first year of flying, 1969. I had finally conquered my battle with motion sickness and looked forward to smoother flights, now that it was Summer! Much to my surprise, Mother Nature had a few surprises in store for me!
I don't remember exactly where my trip brought me, but know we were flying around the mid-west. It was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky! I was in the middle of the cabin with a pallet tray full of soft drinks. All at once the aircraft started bouncing and swaying- violently! The contents of my tray ended up on my front. I was just baptized! I remember putting the tray on the floor and sitting down on the nearest arm rest! With the way the aircraft was moving I knew I'd never make it back to the galley without loosing my footing! The man who's arm rest I was using as a seat grabbed me by my waist and shouted "What's happening??!!"
I didn't know! Once it smoothed out a bit, I put the tray in the galley and headed for the cockpit! Once I opened the door both pilots turned to look at me. I must have been a sight! I was wide eyed and drenched in about 12 beverages! They said in unison "Oops!" and began to laugh! My response was something like "What just happened?!?" Their response was "Clear Air Turbulence!" That was my baptism into the knowledge that very hot air from the ground could jolt the plane around, no matter the clear blue skies!
This all happened before the airline implemented turbulence warning for the cabin crew. Back in the day we were under the impression that you tried to serve, no matter what! Of course, if you couldn't stand, you couldn't serve! It was sort of up to each of us to deem when it was too dangerous. The Convair 580 wasn't the only aircraft that was subjected to Mother Nature's trickery! On many a flight on the DC-9 and larger aircraft I had the same experience!
There was one trip I had on the Dc-9-30 that had clear air turbulence so severe that my fellow flight attendant was thrown into the counter of the galley! I don't know her injuries at the time, only that she was hurting! We were on our last leg of flying, heading back to Detroit. I had her sit down for the rest of the flight, and filled out an injury report. I later found out she had a broken rib! Ouch!
Having heavy serving carts in the isle when Clear Air Turbulence hits is a dangerous thing! Those things weigh upwards of 50 pounds, depending on whether they are beverage carts or meal carts! On one flight I saw a meal cart actually tip over onto a seat during turbulence. It took two of us to get it back on it's 4 wheels! Welcome to Summer!
Out of all the things we Stewardesses/ Flight Attendants dealt with, I think the most dangerous for us was turbulence! I remember fellow crew members having head injuries from hitting galley overhead doors, back and foot injuries. And we all walked around with plenty of bruising on our legs!
I do remember a passenger being in the bathroom during one such "surprise"! After a few minutes of violent bouncing and swaying the bathroom door opened and out crawled the passenger! I didn't know if I should try to get him on his feet or let him crawl to his seat! Thankfully his seat was close to the bathroom, so crawl he did! Once seated he said to me something to the effect that someone will need to clean the bathroom, since his aim was off! All we could do is laugh!
On a more upbeat note- I heard a story which made me smile. One Flight Attendant was thrown during Clear Air Turbulence and landed in a soldier's lap! The aircraft continued to sway and shutter, so she stayed there for a bit. The soldier said he wouldn't let go of her unless she gave him her phone number! Since this young handsome soldier seemed heroic and friendly, she decided to do just that. One year later they married, and thanked their lucky stars that Mother Nature threw them together, literally!
Outside of bruises (and a drenched uniform), I was fortunate to not have any injuries from Clear Air Turbulence. And as my career progressed we had warnings and policies in place to protect us from getting harmed during turbulence! We were all grateful for such policies! Depending on the degree of turbulence we were to sit and wait to hear from the cockpit when it was safe to serve.
Until Next Time, Dear Readers!
Life Is Indeed An Adventure, And Clear Air Turbulence Is An Adventure For Crew Members And Passengers Alike!
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