This was published 4 years ago
Tan France of 'Queer Eye' quit his job as a flight attendant after just two months
By David Oliver
Tan France.Credit: Chris Pizzello
Tan France is the "Queer Eye" style expert to most people, but if you were flying Britannia Airways, a former United Kingdom charter airline, sometime in the early 2000s, he might've been your flight attendant.
France revealed in his new memoir out Tuesday, "Naturally Tan," that he got (and quit) many a job as a young adult, including one as a flight attendant at 19 years old.
"It was meant to be a six-month seasonal job, but I only lasted two months," he writes.
He had no clue how difficult the job would be and thought "all they're doing is serving tea and coffee and a bit of something else."
France detailed what he described as gruelling training. "The thirty-day training included some of the hardest moments of my life. It was very difficult, and many people failed ... I felt like a glorified waiter."
Post-9/11 racism was brutal
What was particularly difficult for him was dealing with drunk passengers who could be racist.
"This was a couple of years after 9/11, and they had no qualms about openly referring to my people as terrorists," France, who is British and of Pakistani descent, writes. "The flight would start off well enough, but by the end of the flight, it would be clear they weren't so happy that I was the one serving them."
France also includes a chapter in his book about 9/11.
"Now that I have a platform, I want to use it to dispel any concerns or myths about my people," he said in a recent interview. He talks in the book about trouble he's encountered at the US customs desk and has previously spoken out on social media accusing the TSA of labelling him a "security risk" because of his skin colour.
The final straw: 'They had been so rude to me'
His last trip as a flight attendant was a trip back to England from Ibiza, Spain, where "rowdy people were being aggressive."
"At one point, they got super angry and started asking for coffee because I wouldn't give them alcohol anymore. Because they had been so rude to me the whole time, I finally barked back, 'Get your own (expletive) coffee." He then promptly told the main flight attendant he quit.
France doesn't have any plans of getting his wings back anytime soon. Or ever.
"If I weren't doing any of this anymore, I don't think I would ever choose to do that job again because it's a lot more complicated than anyone thinks," he also said.
TNS
Sign up for the Traveller newsletter
The latest travel news, tips and inspiration delivered to your inbox. Sign up now.