A flock of trainee flight attendants flew out of Dunedin yesterday to train in emergency aircraft evacuation procedures in Auckland.
However, the 20 Sir George Seymour College students soon had a first-hand experience of the frustrations of air travel when their 11.30am Jetstar JQ282 flight was delayed.
"This delay is severely eating into our shopping time," flight attendant course tutor Sharon Bratton joked.
The students are undergoing an emergency procedures assessment as the final part of their certificate in international flight attending.
"The college has its own 737 in Auckland, which has the wings off. We do all the evacuation procedures and things on that. It's a pretty action-packed assessment. They have to get 100% to pass," Mrs Bratton said.
The training was the culmination of a 25-week travel course and a 12-week flight attendant course.
"The course is very popular and it's normally full. We've got two guys this year, but we still get more ladies. The average age is between 18 and 25."
The attributes of a top flight attendant hadn't changed since the days of the Wright Brothers, she said.
"Someone who really cares about people and is flexible with a positive attitude and a nice, warm smile. Oh, and it helps to be a problem-solver, too."
The students left Dunedin at 1pm and will return after three days of emergency procedure training.
