ferdegene-blog

[ferdegene-blog]

Last Shift

November 30 2019

Today is my last shift and im excited to go to work because I want to finish my shift and enjoy it as much as I can today. So it started out really chill, it wasn't that busy because there are a lot of agents that are working and there are only a couple of flights left when I arrive. All I did was helped as much as I can and talk to passengers how are they doing and some other stuff because im pretty sure that I'm going to miss doing this placement. After doing my placement for almost 3 months i know that it benefited me and I gained a lot of information that could help me in the future and I am very grateful about this placement because little by little i get to know a lot about myself. So after the last flight at 2030, we helped out the agents to bring the signs back for the last time and left early saying our goodbyes to the agents and giving our thanks for helping us throughout our placement.

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Almost there

November 24, 2019

Im almost done i already got my 143 hours after today and I'm pretty excited to finish my shift on Saturday. So today was not that busy on the Kiosk because most passengers going to Cuba has to go to the counters to check in their flight. So a very important reminder they told us to keep note if the passenger we are helping is going to Cuba is to always check if they are Cuban born or not because if they are, they have to use a different passport to go to Cuba. But if they are not, they can use their Canadian passport. Today was so busy and a lot of people are going to Holguin that they have to delay the flight for a few minutes to change the aircraft to a bigger one.

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Helping the agents 

November 3 2019

Today was pretty eye opening for me because I get to learn a lot of useful information after talking to the agents working in the Kiosk. They told us a lot of stuff like how to get your RAIC and why is it beneficial to acquire one, how to get a job in the airport, and a lot of other stuff. They also showed us some simple things on what they do on the computers on the counter and also they use it. This kind of connecting with workers in the airport is pretty important because they know the ins and outs and opportunity that the airport has to offer. Also we also helped them on putting the signs back to the storage because they let us leave early today as well. 

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Connection flights 

October 28 2019 

So today there were 2 flights that are connecting to Montreal and they want some students to hold out a sign to direct the passengers who are connecting to the gates. So i was one of those students that were assigned to stand and hold that sign. Basically what im supposed to do was standing right in the middle close to the monitor, were the flights are posted, and tell every passenger that would come towards me to answer their questions. It was a busy day so the Terminal 3 was pretty packed up so a lot of people asked me different questions, not only Air Transat passengers, like where is the gates, where can they find customer service, where can they find Flair, and a bunch of different stuff. For me, i find it enjoyable because I get to help these people even though my only job was to direct Air Transat passengers who are connecting. I love it, even though I was standing for more than hours before i can switch with another student, i was having fun interacting with different people and helping them even though it's only simple questions. Also in a way, I am improving my communication skills by doing this which is beneficial for me. 

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Study week

October 23 2019 

So during this study week im working an extra shift because apparently Ravi is giving us a chance to add more shift this week so we can finish our shift as early as we can which is pretty helpful because we started later than WestJet and Cathay Pacific. So today im working a shorter shift because it's a Wednesday. They said that Wednesday is one of the days that there are not busy which is right because today we only have a few as well and after the last flight they let us off an hour early because the last flight was at 2000 and i'm working until 2100 which is nice because I get to go home early today.

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Slow day

October 14 2019 

Today is my first day working on a Monday and the time was pretty slow. There are few flights for today and there aren't a lot of people in the airport which is pretty quiet. There would be times were a lot of passengers would come and walk towards us but after that would be hours of waiting for another batch to come in. There’s only a few students working that day and i can tell you that everybody feels the same. The lack of energy to be motivated and the feeling that time is ticking to slow. But regardless that vibes, we dont let it affect our performance when we are interacting with a person, we show to them that we are expecting and happy to provide them some help. After finishing my shift that day i kind of not wanting to go on Monday’s anymore because of the energy I got working today. I kind of want to work on days were it is busy because I can practice and feel energetic working under that kind of pressure.

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Another day, another situation

October 12 2019 

Today is my 3rd day in doing my placement and something happened an hour after starting my shift. So there was a guy who keeps on insisting to drop off his bag because he is connecting to another destination with Air Transat. But the problem is he can’t drop off his bag for another hour because the counter wouldn't open at that time but he keeps insisting that he wants to drop it off because that is what his ticket said. So I told him what I know that he can only drop if off an hour because that's what it says on the briefing sheet that they gave us. Even though the agent told him the same thing i did he keep insisting that's why they decided to let him talk to a supervisor. For me to experience that after only working for 3 days is very overwhelming but an important lesson as well. And one of the agents came to me and asked if I was okay after all that because they said that person was probably stressed that he can keep his emotions in check. The agents were very nice they told me that kind of situation always happens and i'll get used to that. 

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Meeting new people 

October 10 2019

Today is my second day of my shift and things are a little bit easier working in the Kiosk, just a little though because I still can’t get used to the part of navigating through the Kiosk. But regardless, I'm still able to get the hang of it because i can always ask questions to the agents working that day. Also today, I get to meet new people that I only see in school, a mixed of third and fourth semester student. It was a pretty good day for getting to know others, i get to know John, Danny, Jinyoung, Viet, and Lady, and i hope to work with these amazing and fun people for my next shifts. 

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First Day 

October 5 2019

Today is my first day in my placement. So Ravi told us yesterday after the orientation if there are some of us who wants to start our shift today, Saturday. So some of my friends were planning to go and insisted that I should go as well, so I'll  be able to experience it before the others do. So i was about to be late in my first day because I had to travel for almost 2 hours because I was at a tree planting volunteer in Victoria Park which is pretty far. But anyhow, i got to the Terminal 3 and have to go to operations first so I can drop off my stuff before I head to the Kiosk. So as I walk towards the counter i was getting nervous thinking about what they told us yesterday at the orientation. At first I was shadowing an DNATA agent who was working at the Kiosk. Mayo, the agent, taught me how the Kiosk works, from printing a boarding pass and putting a baggage tag. After a couple of hours doing that, in a way I was getting used to it but unless i'm unsure of something, I would ask the agents or my fellow student who is working that day about my question. I worked 8 hours that day and within those hours I get to experience how everything works.

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 Orientation Day

October 4 2019

So today im at the airport getting oriented for Air Transat. I’m a bit early and im nervous because its my first time going to the airport by myself after almost 3 years. I mean to Terminal 3 because last year we went on a trip but i was placed on Terminal 1. But yeah after 10 minutes I get to see the other students who got chosen by Air Transat, some of them I know and the rest I don't. After a while, Ravi and two other Flight Attendants who are currently working in the counters came and started the orientation. To make it short, they split us up on 3 groups and gave us a tour of the office and and showed us operations, taught us on how to use the kiosk and after told us what they are expecting us to do. Ravi gave us our timetable for next week and everyone is excited for it.