WANcareerlife: As a flight attendant, MBUSO NGCANGA sees the world from above the clouds

MBUSO NGCANGA in New York

He says flying is not such a glamorous occupation, but surely for MBUSO NGCANGA seeing all these beautiful cities and beautiful people every time he is on duty must be an adrenalin boost. He is a flight attendant and at only 25 he has seen all of the world and its pretty species. Mbuso, a confirmed three pieces suit man, is grounded for a while and, in a relaxed, jovial mood, talks to Suzen Senyolo about his work, his future plans as a business man and about his mother.

Where do you work?
South African Airways.

What do you do there?
I am a flight attendant and double as a safety officer on-board an aircraft.
I was a ill nervous but totally looking forward to my first time I flew and reall excited about it.

What subjects did/do you study for this type of a career at school and at tertiary institution?

Subjects have nothing to do with this line of work. However, I did English, which is a vital subject for this kind of job. I also did, accounting, history, business studies, Afrikaans and mathematical literacy.

What is your job description? Take us though your day sir?

Firstly, I ensure that I am medically fit to perform my duties as a safety officer.
Secondly, I go through my travel documents and other work documents to check their validity and that they are up-to-date.
Then it’s over to a briefing with my crew and the captain. Here we discuss flight details and so on; then we discuss how we would respond to a fire situation on-board the aircraft, or a medical scenario of either a pregnant passenger or a passenger who succumbs to a heart attack. I then check the validity of medical and emergency equipment (halon, oxygen bottles, crash axe, firefighting gloves, PBE (portable breathing equipment), doctor’s bag, grab bag, first aid kit, life jackets).

When these have been checked as ok then I welcome passengers on board and assist them with their baggage. When this has been done I then perform what mainly excites first time flyers, the safety demonstration. Then I arm the doors and physically cross check. Once the aircraft is airborne I offer passengers food and other amenities.

However, I have not given medical attention to anyone famous so far. However, I have served quite a number of famous people on flight. I have served the then minister Paul Mashatile, Health minister Dr. Aaron Motoaledi, King Kotini Riky Rick, Nomzamo Mbatha,Benjamin Dube and his sons, Dj Cleo, Dj Dimplez, Dj Vigilante, Dj Switch, Terry Pheto, Mampho Brescia
There have been scary moments. A passenger once fainted and literally fell to the floor and he looked pale with his tongue out and I feared him to have passed away only for crew to use their brilliant av-med skills and help him recover. That whole scene for me was a little scary.

What skills and subjects and courses are required in this career?
One must be sober and sound minded and needs to think of out the ordinary. Must also have an attentive ear. There is no specific subject one needs and one can study anything at school level. However, a course in psychology or in customer relations is an advantage and one must be customer focused and generally be of a warm character.

It is not all glamorous as people make it out to be. We experience culture shock with at certain destinations where we fly to and find it hard to accept how other people live or conduct themselves culturally.

I will never forget an about something which happened in Hong Kong. At a market in Mong Kok a street vendor was selling snake soup. It did not look appetising at all. For me it was quite bizzare.

On-board we also experience shock from seeing passengers with rare medical conditions or disorders. Language barrier becomes an issue in European destinations and South America, which makes it hard to move around their cities and to socialise.

What countries have you flown to until now as we speak
Angola, Australia, Benin, Brazil, Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, China(Hong Kong) , Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia , Rwanda, Uganda, Senegal, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, United States Of America, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

And I have been to Times Square, Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, 911 Memorial, White House, Pentagon, Victoria Peak, Victoria Habour

I find African countries to be more beautiful because of their scenic views, the lakes and mountain views. I find Uganda to be beautiful. Lake Victoria is wonderful to behold. I also love the beaches of Dakar in Senegal.

Where in the world are the beautiful women?

That is easy, Ghana and Zambia

Have you ever dined with anyone famous?

No, not yet. I have never dined with anyone famous

How where your teachers involved with your aspirations?
I would say my mother was more involved whereas my teachers were not. It was something I wanted to do because my mother as did it too. I wanted to experience how other people live in the world and to learn about their cultures and customs. I wanted to expose my palate and taste different flavours from all over the world.
My family knew I wanted to travel for living and they supported my passion.

What did you do at school level to contact role-models and other experts regarding your chosen career?

My role model was right at home and it was my mother. She used to tell me the ins and outs of job and told me how the application process goes like and all other essential details.

Are you a member of an organisation in the area of your occupation?

I am a member of a trade union called SACCA which stands for South African Cabin Crew Association.

What are the growth prospects in this line of work?
One can start their own cabin crew training school or even get an opportunity of training to become a pilot.

What is the industry like?

The industry is fast paced and moves rapidly. Competition among airlines is stiff and airlines constantly need to improve their aircraft equipment and on-board products in order to succeed.

What are related fields?

There are a few. For an example, air traffic control services, air navigational services, catering services, medical services, travel agencies, immigration and border control.

What were your primary and high schools?

Crystal Park Primary and B.E.C (Benoni Educational College).

What subjects did you do at school? What were your favourite subjects?
My favourite subjects were business studies and history.
These subjects have given me the understanding of how an airline business is run and what it takes, financially, for an aircraft to take-off and fly passengers to far-away destinations. They have also given me insight about the histories of different ethnic groups of people around the world about cities, historic buildings and statues.

Who were your favourite teachers?

Mrs Bensley, Mrs Moema, Miss Sithole, Mr Pheme.

What community organisations are you involved with?

No as yet, not keen.

What sport do you play?

No sport for me. But I rather swim.

Are you married and are there any children?
I am still single thank you and I don’t have any children. Still want to enjoy and learn.

Is aviation the only career you focused on?

Aviation is not the only career I am focused on. I am business-minded and have established a business of which I am not at liberty to disclose for reasons of still being employed by an airline. (Laughs).

Are you fashion conscious?
I do love fashion. However, I am more into formal business wear and three piece suits.

Who is your favourite fashionista?

Riky Rick.