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IWASM: “Flight Attendants Past & Present”

by Mary Jo Manzanares on June 23rd, 2006

An exhibit entitled “Air Hostess ““ Honoring Flight Attendants Past & Present” opened June 5th at the International Women’s Air & Space Museum (IWASM) in Cleveland, Ohio.  The exhibit will run through August.

This look back at the history of Flight Attendants includes displays of scrapbooks, uniforms, and other artifacts, most of which are on display for the first time. 

The first female Flight Attendant, then called an air stewardess, was Ellen Church.  She was a registered nurse, a job requirement at the time, and was hired by Boeing Air Transport (later part of United Airlines) in 1930 as an experiment to help convince the public that flying was a safe and reliable form of transportation. 

Ms Church, and seven others hired at the time, were responsible for taking care of passengers during the flight, but were also responsible for carrying baggage, cleaning the interior of the plane, pushing the plane into the hangar and refueling.  If history is accurate, the most important part of the job was to make sure passengers using the lavatory didn’t open the exit door in error. 

And for this you needed to be a registered nurse!

Boeing’s “experiment” was so successful, that the other airlines hired air stewardesses as well, and the rest is history.  You’ll see that history on display at the museum.

Another museum exhibit details the Women in the Mercury Space Program.  IWASM is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation.

The IWASM is located at Burke Lakefront Airport (1501 N. Marginal Road), Room 165, in downtown Cleveland, and is open during airport hours.  Admission is free.

Photo credit:  IWASM

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POSTED IN: Air Travel, Museums, Things to See & Do