Texting on Takeoff

On our Northwest Flight 594 this morning from Portland to Minneapolis Erin and I were sitting in the exit row by the first bulkhead.  The flight attendants went through the normal procedure of getting everyone in their seats and closing the boarding door.  Like any other flight they then came on the intercom and instructed us to turn off all electronic devices including cell phones and ipods.  I made sure that my cell was off and that my iPod touch was stowed for takeoff.  Kay the flight attendant who was seated across the isle from me dissapeared into the restroom while the plane was taxing to the run way.  She re-emerged a couple minutes later with cell phone in hand.  I only noticed because the lights were off in the cabin, and her cell phone was glowing like a flashlight in the dark.  I thought to myself “This is odd.  They told us to turn those off five minutes ago”  I was kinda of annoyed by this knowing that if I had my cell out and running I would be reprimanded for doing so.  As we pulled into position on the runway for takeoff Kay then sat down in her seat across from me and tried to hide her cell under her coat on her lap while she continued to text away.  As a school teacher this is a tactic often observed in the classroom by high school students.  As the plane was just lifting off the ground she continued to text away and check the glowing screen under her coat.  I felt very cheated knowing that I could be using my ever so dangerous iPod touch to listen to music during our takeoff if it weren’t for the airlines rules.  Now I know that having a cell phone up and running during a flight will not cause the plane to fall from the sky, however as a flight attendant who is supposed to be enforcing these rules, I felt that this was a very unprofessional action to take in front of an entire plane full of passengers.

Just my two cents, but if they can do it, why can’t I?

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