Can a girl handle a line services position?

R

Regina

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Regina
Several of my buddies work at FBO's and I'd really love to get a job on the service line. I've checked out a few places online, and I think I can probably handle it.
The only thing that is kind of questionable is lifting the hoses over my head ( which, now that I think of it is... 90% of the job. :goofy:)

I'm pretty tough and 've always been a tomboy.
I won't get weird and prissy about emptying the lav but I'm not really sure if I can physically handle the lifting requirements.

I thought that as long as I can use the leverage of the hose over my shoulder I should be .. ok.. right?

Does anyone work on the line, can you give me an idea of what an average day is like and maybe any other things I should know before I apply?

Thanks!
 
The kdcu former fbo owner was a woman. She was a small thing and could out push, pull, drag, and fuel any of her line guys.

Go for it. You will have fun.
 
I've seen young gals handle it at many FBOs. I taught a young lady in her own Cessna 150 last summer/fall and she wrangled the hoses just fine...and she was pretty petite!!

Unless prop blast sends you twirling out of control I suspect you'd handle it just fine.
 
Was at LAL this weekend and there was a line service person there and she did a fantatic job.
 
What's so heavy about the hoses?

If you're concerned about your strength you could always go to a gym and work out.
 
Palmpilot said:
What's so heavy about the hoses?
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Usually it's the thick rubber stuff that carries the fuel and the big metal connections or nozzles on the end.

If you're concerned about your strength you could always go to a gym and work out.
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Not sure I'd tell anybody I wanted to join a hose club.;)
 
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Paging Z06_Mir - please pick up the white courtesy phone
 
wabower said:
Usually it's the thick rubber stuff that carries the fuel and the big metal connections or nozzles on the end.
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Are Jet-A hoses much harder to handle than avgas hoses?
 
Palmpilot said:
Are Jet-A hoses much harder to handle than avgas hoses?
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That depends. Jet fuel over wing are just a little heavier. Jet fuel single point are about fourty pounds.


I'm a female and I've worked line since I was 18. Before that I worked at the desk at the same FBO. Yes you can do it. Single points are heavy and if you're doing an airbus or 737 its tricky to climb up the ladder with it, but not impossible. Av gas is easy, most over wing jet is easy too, but king airs can get ya in the eye easily. Ill post more when I'm at home and not on my iPad. But working line has been so fun and memorable. I recommend it to all pilots and non pilots.
 
The FBO in Jackson Hole Wyoming has 40% or so female line reps.. They service all types of aircraft and they do GREAT job......

To the OP ..

First...
Welcome..
and Second... go for it... you can do it..:yes::yes::thumbsup:
 
Wow! Thanks guys! This is very encouraging!
 
Personally, I appreciate all of the line guys. When I finish a long flight, I am happy to see a smiling person come greet me and offer to help and explain local procedures. I think a girl (woman) would be able to do all the physical stuff almost as well, but do all the customer service stuff at least as well. Maybe that is sexist, but that is the world we live in. Go for it.
 
JOhnH said:
Is there anything to see in Bay Minette besides the line girls? My wife and I are looking for new places to fly, and I can't tell her that is why I want to fly there. :D
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Stop there for fuel and take the Mrs. to jack Edwards / gulf shores and have lunch at LuLu's. I've not found anything in Bay Minette worth leaving the airport for. :D
 
Isn't some fancy resort located near-by? Seems like we stopped there on the way to Florida once upon a time.

pbramlett said:
Stop there for fuel and take the Mrs. to jack Edwards / gulf shores and have lunch at LuLu's. I've not found anything in Bay Minette worth leaving the airport for. :D
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wabower said:
Isn't some fancy resort located near-by? Seems like we stopped there on the way to Florida once upon a time.
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Windcreek Resort and Casino is in Atmore which is 20nm ENE of bay Minette. That is about all that the area has to offer.
 
Yes, a girl can handle working the line.

Please be VERY careful of exposure to the leaded fuel and contact with your skin. IMHO, women of child bearing age should be very careful to avoid contact with gas and 100ll. :D

JMHO.
 
JOhnH said:
Personally, I appreciate all of the line guys. When I finish a long flight, I am happy to see a smiling person come greet me and offer to help and explain local procedures. I think a girl (woman) would be able to do all the physical stuff almost as well, but do all the customer service stuff at least as well. Maybe that is sexist, but that is the world we live in. Go for it.
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This post is great. Some days, us line service folks feel like we are the red welcome mat being stepped all over. It's discouraging some days, and it happens with all sizes of airplanes too, not just big ones. I can't tell you how many times myself and my coworkers have been shouted at from RV pilots to GV pilots.


I promise all of you that we do our best. We don't try to Hirt your airplane. We try our hardest to get things done on time. We try to accommodate your quick turn even when we have 5 jets in line. It makes our job easier when you approach us as your equal, we are providing a service but we are not door mats. And we appreciate every 'thank you' and 'good job'. We love nothing more than hearing how great the service was.


Ill get off my line service soap box (fuel truck?) now.:lol:
 
I got some conflicting info that made me doubt my abilities. Apparently, there is a difference between working line services and being a refueler? A few guys I talked to insisted that the manager would take one look at me and decide that I want able to handle it physically and that I would end up in the office. Another guy said they would hire me for "political reasons" ( not sure what that means...) and that I would shuffle to lift an 80 pound hose until I finally "broke my body" or quit.

My old CFI told me they were full of it and that he FBO would just have me refuel GA aircraft and not commercial. I didn't realize there was a difference in responsibilities between line services and refuelers.

Should I just assume that they were trying to discourage me from even applying? Or is there any truth to it? Also, while I'm thinking of applying because I love airplanes.. They told me that CSRs make more $$ than line service even though line guys ( and gals) are exposed to cancerous fumes.

Is there any truth to that?
 
Regina said:
I got some conflicting info that made me doubt my abilities. Apparently, there is a difference between working line services and being a refueler? A few guys I talked to insisted that the manager would take one look at me and decide that I want able to handle it physically and that I would end up in the office. Another guy said they would hire me for "political reasons" ( not sure what that means...) and that I would shuffle to lift an 80 pound hose until I finally "broke my body" or quit.

My old CFI told me they were full of it and that he FBO would just have me refuel GA aircraft and not commercial. I didn't realize there was a difference in responsibilities between line services and refuelers.

Should I just assume that they were trying to discourage me from even applying? Or is there any truth to it? Also, while I'm thinking of applying because I love airplanes.. They told me that CSRs make more $$ than line service even though line guys ( and gals) are exposed to cancerous fumes.

Is there any truth to that?
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You get cancerous fumes every time you fill up your car...

Geez.... You have to think logically..Ma'am
 
(start Internet bot search tool = find user_new)
(username = Regina)
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N801BH said:
You get cancerous fumes every time you fill up your car...

Geez.... You have to think logically..Ma'am
Click to expand...

That was my thinking as well.
They insisted there is some vapor mechanism that blocks the fumes.
They told me on a summer day the vapor is " stifling":rolleyes2:
 
Regina said:
That was my thinking as well.
They insisted there is some vapor mechanism that blocks the fumes.
They told me on a summer day the vapor is " stifling":rolleyes2:
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Hmmm..

Personally I get off on the smell of 100LL aviation fuel... it is the ultimate aromatic perfume to me..:yes:;).. Your mileage my differ...
 
Meaning, consumers refueling their car are protected from the fumes while line Guys are not.


( sorry, I just realized my phone cut that last Sentence off)
 
You type well, for someone using a phone.
 
I've seen women (and men) of all shapes, sizes, and ages working on the line and handling fueling.

Just a note: one of our local FBO A&Ps is a young lady who is well along into her pregnancy. The FBO has her working in the front now, to keep her away from the fuel and solvents she'd normally be exposed to.
 
I guess that depends on whether you have a fun, flirtatious attitude, or a skanky Hillary Clinton women-are the-same-as-men attitude. I hope it's the former, because nobody likes to be served by a skank. :nonod:

If you doubt you physical ability, go to the gym and lift that weight over your head. If you can't do that, stay in the gym till you can. :yesnod:

Put you hair in a ponytail. If your hair is short, grow it long and put it in a ponytail. :yes:

Stay clean. Nobody likes a sweaty, greasy girl. :nono: Except for maybe a little smudge on your cheekbone.

Fumes? I love the smell of Jet A blowing across the ramp on a hot afternoon. :)
 
If a woman has the strength then there is no reason she can't do the job! Of course the same requirements would apply to a man as well. I'd never even think that a female could not do that job.
 
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N801BH said:
You get cancerous fumes every time you fill up your car...

Geez.... You have to think logically..Ma'am
Click to expand...
True, but the exposure is much more. You do not fill up your car 10 or 20 times a day(though I do not know how many planes get fueled a day, but I would assume it is more often then most of us fuel up our cars), and most cars are full after 10 or 20 gallons, whereas most planes need more than that.

However, my bet is that it is not too high of a risk or we would see someone sueing an FBO or the fuel companies because they got cancer from aviation fuel.
 
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