The Real Reasons Men Were Pushed Out of Flight Attendant Jobs

The role of the flight attendant, or cabin crew, is heavily dominated by women today. However, the first people hired for the job were men, known as stewards, in the 1920s.

The Shift from Steward to Stewardess

The profession began to change in the 1930s with the hiring of female registered nurses. By the 1950s and 1960s, airlines embraced a marketing strategy. They promoted the stewardess as a glamorous, young, and attractive figure. This was designed to appeal to the predominantly male business traveler demographic.

An example of this focus is a 1966 United Airlines advertisement. It described the stewardess's "extra care" for the tired male passenger. It even mentioned her straightening his boutonnière. This marketing cemented the role as a "girl's job."

In 1967, an airline executive testified to a tribunal. He stated that "anyone who has ever been on an airplane... knows that this is a girl’s job.” He continued, calling it “a young and pretty girl’s job.” This sentiment highlighted the gender discrimination in aviation at the time.

Simultaneously, a moral panic began to affect male flight attendants. The highly publicized 1954 murder of Eastern Airlines steward William T. Simpson was a factor. This event gave American airlines an excuse to stop employing men. By the 1960s, many operators refused to hire men for the cabin.

Legal Battles and the Re-Entry of Men

The tide began to turn with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This legislation made discriminatory hiring practices illegal. In 1967, Celio Diaz, Jr. applied for a flight attendant job with Pan American World Airways (Pan Am). He was rejected solely because of his sex.

Diaz filed a landmark lawsuit against Pan Am. The airline argued that a woman's femininity was a “bona fide occupational qualification.” Diaz ultimately won his case. A U.S. court of appeals ruled that the job's core duty was passenger safety. This had nothing to do with gender. This ruling allowed men to legally re-enter the profession.

The AIDS Crisis and Continued Discrimination

Despite legal victories, a new and devastating barrier arose. The AIDS crisis in the 1980s and 1990s severely exacerbated the challenges for male flight attendants. The profession had a disproportionately high number of gay men. Passengers and airlines feared that male crew members were potential AIDS carriers.

Some US-based airlines actively worked to keep men out of the cabin. This was due to fear that they were HIV positive. There was also concern that customers would be fearful of them. Furthermore, airlines sought to avoid the healthcare and insurance costs for HIV-positive men.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted the impact. One study found deaths from HIV-related illnesses were 16 times higher among male flight attendants compared to the general male population.
• A United Airlines flight attendant named Gär Traynor was grounded in 1983 due to his AIDS diagnosis. He fought the airline and won the right to return to work. This established a critical legal precedent against AIDS-phobia.

Modern Cabin Crew Gender Ratio

Today, the industry uses the gender-neutral term flight attendant. However, the cabin crew gender ratio remains heavily skewed. Current data shows that women still make up the vast majority of the workforce. Estimates for the US workforce place the female ratio between 73.9% and 86%. This means men account for 14% to 26.1% of all flight attendants.

While legal barriers are gone, the historical and cultural forces persist. The fight for true gender parity continues in the aviation industry employment sector. For more commercial aviation news and analysis, visit flying.flights.

• The profession's history shows a clear cycle of gender exclusion.
• Legal action was necessary to dismantle discriminatory hiring rules.
• The AIDS crisis introduced a unique, health-related form of gender discrimination in aviation.
• The cabin crew gender ratio remains heavily female-dominated, reflecting a lasting cultural legacy.