One of the thrills of being a corporate flight attendant is having the ability to visit the most amazing locations as part of your career. Today we bring you an interview with Danielle Goto, a cabin crew member based out of Boeing Field International Airport (KBFI) who has traveled to over 30 countries.
Danielle has over six and a half years of experience as a corporate flight attendant, and is an active member of Women in Aviation. She has flown on aircraft such as the DA50, DA700, DA2000, Gulfstream 3, 4SP, 5, 550 and 650; and Global Express XRS. She received her initial training through Aircare FACTS and recurrent training from FlightSafety International. In addition to being a corporate flight attendant, Danielle has a Private Pilot’s License and an associate degree in Air Traffic Control and Airline Dispatch. As if that isn’t impressive enough, she will be graduating with a bachelor’s degree in accounting next month.
When thinking back to all of the locations she has been to, one of her most favorite is Cairo, Egypt. “I loved visiting Egypt, seeing the pyramids near Cairo and the Nile River,” said Danielle. “I felt as if I stepped into a National Geographic article. I guess you could say I love culture and history a lot, so anyplace with a strong culture and significant history thoroughly excites me!”
For tips on exploring Cairo, Danielle recommends “seeing the pyramids of Giza outside Cairo and visiting the Cairo Museum where King Tut’s sarcophagus is on display. Both sites are very cool to see. A big tip I have for anyone visiting Cairo for the first time: hire a guide! Do not tour around by yourself or else you will be accosted nonstop by people trying to sell things. Guides are very affordable; mine was an archeologist named Muhamed Ali, and he had in-depth knowledge since he had helped with digs for universities. I was there just this past May and felt very safe in Cairo.”
While discussing favorite foods, Danielle says the “rice and chicken they cook in Egypt is phenomenal. It is filled with amazing spices and seasons, and is very flavorful!” Danielle says that her culinary preferences are all based on her mood, and she particularly loves Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. Her favorite dish is “pho,” a Vietnamese noodle soup. She loves it so much that she makes sure to eat it at least once or twice a week.
Speaking of cuisine, Danielle shared that one of her biggest in-flight catering challenges is getting the correct portions. “Depending on where you are flying out of, if you are not familiar with the caterer, it’s hard to know how big their portions will be,” said Danielle. “Sometimes you order for three and it’s enough for six or vice versa. In order to avoid any surprises, I ask ahead of time roughly how big their portions are, so I can gauge how much to order. It is helpful when caters have portion pictures on their website so we can easily see what we are ordering, or know what to expect in portion sizes. For example, it is very helpful to show what a two pax platter looks like compared to a four pax platter. Obviously though, in some countries caterers may not even have a website.”
Danielle says that anyone considering becoming a corporate flight attendant should “network, research and don’t trust just anybody. There are some scams out there that I have heard of, so make sure the flight departments you work with are reputable and honest. Keep in touch with flight attendants you meet, and know what the industry standard of pay is for your area. I also recommend finding a mentor – a flight attendant with at least 5-10+ years of experience that you can get advice from and learn from.”
To be a truly successful corporate flight attendant, Danielle believes it takes a mix of “organization, thick skin and a high-stress threshold. As a corporate flight attendant, you need to multitask all the time, be very organized and attentive to detail in order to stay on top of your game. If I fly a grumpy passenger, it does not ruin my day or my love for my career. I let it roll off me like water off a duck’s back. You can’t always fly happy people all the time, so it’s important to have thick skin and not let a tough passenger get to you. Also, things are on the go all the time in corporate aviation, so you need to be able to keep cool at all times – no stressing over the small stuff!” The next time you are looking for a highly-skilled corporate flight attendant in Seattle, contact Danielle Goto at danielle.goto@gmail.com.
This article is part of a series of interviews we are conducting with contract cabin crew members; individuals who are not employed by Air Culinaire Worldwide. If you would like to be considered for an interview, which is posted on our blog and all of our social media accounts, please contact socialmedia@airculinaire.com.
