Cabin Pressure? Not So Much With 'Retired' JetBlue Flight Attendants

Aug. 7, 2010 — -- At 70 years old, Lenny Spivey isn't a typical flight attendant. His resume isn't typical either.

Spivey is a 30-year veteran of the New York City fire department, and he's one of an estimated 200 or more retired emergency responders now working onboard JetBlue flights.

"In an emergency, they've been there, they've done it. So we can rely on them that anything in the cabin is taken care of beforehand," said Dan Triboletti, a JetBlue pilot who worked with Spivey onboard a recent New York to Los Angeles flight.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, the role of the flight attendant has changed. In addition to serving drinks and reciting safety instructions, they're now detaining terror suspects, such as Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the accused "underwear bomber."

They're also dealing with "air rage" incidents, and handling disruptive flyers, like the smoker who forced a Los Angeles-bound American Airlines flight to be diverted to Albuquerque earlier this week.

"[Flight attendants] really have to handle situations at 36,000 feet on their own. And the background of someone like Lenny brings professionalism, demeanor and calmness, and the ability to execute under pressure," said Vicky Stennes, JetBlue's vice president of in-flight experience.

This isn't an entirely new concept. The idea of hiring a flight crew with a background in training for emergencies dates back to the very first commercial flights.

"The first flight attendants were registered nurses and airplanes in those days made 20 stops coast to coast. They flew low in turbulence and [there was] air sickness. It was a very different cabin environment than it is today. So the thought was that registered nurses would take care of passengers," Stennes said.

Teasing Aside, Former Firefighter Lenny Spivey Made for His Job

Those early flight attendants were also almost entirely young, petite, attractive women, such as the Pan-Am crew depicted in the movie "Catch Me if You Can." They were hired to appeal to male business travelers.

"Oh yeah I got a lot of, I got teased a lot from my firefighter buddies," Spivey said.

He's the first to admit, he doesn't fit the old "stewardess" stereotype.

But, he says, he and the others offer something crucial for modern air travel: experience and reassurance.