CHINA EASTERN Airlines stewardess Jian Weiwei says that even in the three short years she’s taken to the skies, she has seen the commercial aviation sector breaking brand new barriers.
The twenty-something air hostess says that the first class cabins she patrols at 35K feet are still the domain of the well-heeled that help keep the Chinese economic miracle on its flight path, but coach class is also increasingly looking like a broader cross-section of society.
In this latest installment featuring local and expat professionals with close connections to Shenzhen, NextInsight meets this native of Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital of Northern China’s Hebei Province.
Shenzhen is by many measures China’s third most populous city, and is by all measures its most crowded.
The lack of clarity on exactly how many people call Shenzhen home is testimony to the exciting dynamism of this “suburb” of Hong Kong, as its over 10 million strong population is actually much more numerous if all the countless migrant workers and business sojourners are counted.
And Ms. Jian is no exception, flying into Shenzhen on a regular basis on a wide range of domestic flights for China Eastern Airlines Corporation Ltd (HK: 670; SHA: 600115; NYSE: CEA) -- one of China’s ‘Big Three’ commercial carriers.
NextInsight: I am sure you’ve been asked this before, but let’s start with the obvious... What made you decide to make your living above the clouds?
Ms. Jian: I guess I have known all along I would end up working on an airplane. I was always fascinating with flight and was lucky enough to get into the prestigious Shenyang Aeronautical Institute (in Northeast China) and from there it was a logical step to study to become a flight attendant.
Even before I finished high school I had made up my mind to pursue this career. But even more importantly, I had convinced my parents that it was the best option for me. It didn’t take too much effort because they knew that even still in China a lot of young girls would consider this a dream job.
I was no exception, as I always thought stewardesses in their uniforms were so beautiful and even regal. And who would say no to a job that allows you to fly to the four corners of the world, experience the myriad of cultures that this planet has on display, boost one’s cultural knowledge and make a pretty good salary into the bargain?
Okay, I admit, I still haven’t worked an “international" flight, but I am still allowed to dream, last I checked. And maybe I am still young and naïve, and still afflicted from wanderlust, but I still find flights in China very exciting, especially when one ventures off the well-worn Beijing-Shanghai-Shenzhen corridor.
That being said, I can say for sure that Shenzhen is one of the fastest-pace cities in China, and certainly moves to the beat of a different drummer – a faster drummer – than either Beijing or Shanghai.
NextInsight: Tell us about what constitutes a “perfect day” for you onboard a China Eastern flight.
Ms. Jian: The best days begin when we are asked to get to the airport around 8:00 am, which is considered “sleeping in” in this profession! These days involve a reasonable two flights, and if I am crewed up with my favorite colleagues, team leader and a popular pilot, add to that no memorable turbulence in the air, an on-time arrival, sober and trouble-free passengers, and a timely arrival... then I have no complaints! These days usually end “early” at around 8:00 pm which gives me time to hit the local shopping district for some serious girl time and maybe have a rare dinner on terra firma. These are the best days of all.
As for my worst days? Well, just take the opposite of everything I just outlined, I guess.
We are ordered to the airport at 5:00 am to face the exhausting prospect of four legs in one day. This means the possibility of delays are doubled, and we might actually touch down and call it a day when the day has turned into tomorrow.
And don’t forget, delayed flights not only annoy me and my colleagues, but of course also inconvenience hundreds of tired passengers. And that is when tempers are more likely to be tested. These are the worst days.
NextInsight: I won’t ask your age, but for that courtesy, can I ask your salary?
Ms. Jian: I am happy to say that I am “twenty-something...” And I am also very satisfied with my monthly salary of 7,000 yuan. Other than a select few of my former classmates who either started their own businesses or took over their father’s, I am definitely doing better, salary-wise, than almost all of my classmates, at least for my age.
That being said, if China Eastern doubles its income this year, that doesn’t mean mine will double too! So of course I could make more as a stockbroker or a financial consultant... but where’s the job security there? As long as I work hard with a genuine smile, and continually put the passenger first, I will always be welcome in the China Eastern family.
NextInsight: You are very generous to share your salary details with our readers, so let me push my luck and ask how you spend it?
Ms. Jian: Happy to. I am lucky not to pay a single yuan of rent because I still live with my parents. But that is a bit of a misnomer because I spend an equal amount of time living for free in hotels courtesy of China Eastern.
So of my 7,000 yuan monthly paycheck, transportation (other than planes, of course!) takes up 500 yuan, food and drink around 1,000 yuan, entertainment another 1,000 and around 2,000 is spent – though my parents would argue “squandered” – on shopping for clothes and makeup. Hey, I am a flight attendant, I can’t allow myself to slide, right??
So, I manage to save around 2,500 yuan a month.
NextInsight: China is still a so-called “developing country” but Americans and their massive debt to the Middle Kingdom would be inclined to disagree.
Regardless, average per capita GDP here is still a fraction of that in Europe and North America, yet I can say with authority that it is much, much more expensive to fly in China today compared to comparable distance flights in the west. Why is that, and how do Chinese airlines manage to get anyone to fork over such disproportionately high fares?
Ms. Jian: Like you said, we are still a developing country, right? So the airline industry is still in a developing stage. This includes perhaps a less market-based ticket pricing system than that which occurs in your country.
That being said, commercial aviation in China is growing one airplane, one tarmac, one airport at a time. When the still grossly untapped potential of the market is met by the infrastructure, and more open competition exists, then you will start to see bargain carriers sprout up and ticket prices fly under the cloudbank.
It’s a process that takes time. Ten years ago only the upper crust took to the air. The masses simply sweated it out in slow, long-distance train rides.
Now I am seeing every sector of society in our economy class cabin, and it’s a very welcome and encouraging sight.
The government still has very supportive policies for our domestic carriers, including competitive loans and direct subsidies.
So I can see it becoming more and more affordable to travel by air. And with rising salaries across the population’s spectrum, flying tomorrow will be as commonplace and accessible to all as hopping on a train is today. You just watch!
Ms. Jian can be reached at:
See these recent stories on Shenzhen professionals:
SHENZHEN: Wharton Grad Boomerangs Back To Booming China
SHENZHEN: Youth Not Always Wasted On The Young
SHENZHEN EXPAT: Briton Walking On The Wild Side
