It was a year ago at NBAA’s annual convention in Orlando, Florida when flight attendants Young Park and Christina Brown realized there were no social events around the show catering specifically to the flight attendant/flight technician segment. Determined to change that, the pair began contacting colleagues for an impromptu happy hour gathering later that night, and in the span of several hours, they attracted nearly 30 participants to the get-together, many who were at the NBAA show for the first time to market themselves.
“We were able to talk about how difficult it is for them to navigate without knowing anybody,” said Park, who in her spare time also serves as CEO of Seoul, South Korea-based business aviation provisioner Les Chefs Catering. She noted flight attendants and flight technicians rarely get invited to the major company-sponsored after-hours gatherings where they can network.
That led Park to recruit veteran flight attendant Christina Depew to help organize a formal event for this year, which will be held next Monday, on the eve of NBAA 2019, from 7 p.m to 10 p.m. at the Factory of Dreams Hall, just east of Las Vegas McCarran International Airport. Advance registration is required.
“That way…attendees will be able to show up and meet people before the convention, so they don’t feel like they are alone,” explained Park. “I would like them to meet the industry-leading flight attendants for them to have a little bit more knowledge coming into the convention. I would like them to have some kind of information about how to market themselves to be a successful flight attendant in this industry.”
The organizers managed to secure a group of sponsors for the event, which they hope will become an annual occurrence. That list includes NBAA; caterers Art of Cooking (which donated the food for the event), Les Chefs Catering, On Air Dining, and Dnata; World Fuel; cabin crew training providers Davinci Training Institute, Aircare International, and Susan C. Friedenberg; and staffing providers Inflight Crew Connection and Jett Group.
