When Virgin America airlines finally unveils its Upper Class Dream Suite later this year, passengers will be comforted to know that their flight attendants aren’t just talking quietly — they’ve actually been trained by a professional “whisper coach.”
The coach will tutor the attendants on “the tone, volume and sentiment cabin crew should use whilst talking to Upper Class passengers. His specialist training will also ensure that no passenger is unduly disturbed whilst sleeping and that all passengers wake up and arrive at their destination feeling rested and refreshed.”
Which sounds nice, but couldn’t you just tell the flight attendants to speak quietly?
Apparently no. Virgin says they have turned to science to determine exactly how the whispering should be done:
Trialled with several focus groups and test-flights, and formulated with input from speech experts, the appropriate level of volume has been identified and the crew are now trained to whisper at tones between twenty and thirty decibels due to its calming effect and the fact that it won’t disturb other passengers whilst lights are out.
The whisper class adds a full day to the training for Virgin America’s Upper Class flight attendants. So passengers who fly coach should be warned that their cabin crew will scream bloody murder at them in the middle of the night… or so we presume.
Virgin Atlantic’s Whisper Quiet Service [Vtravelled.com]
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I’m pretty sure this will be billed as a convenience fee as well.
How are passengers expected to hear a whisper in an airplane cabin?
I don’t see this making a difference unless the passengers have to also take the class.
Um, nice try but you got the airline wrong. It’s Virgin Atlantic, which is close to, but not the same as, Virgin America.
The original article is about Virgin Atlantic, not Virgin America.
Hehe, this reminds me of a class I took in college (where I was getting a teaching credential). We had a whole class period dedicated to the art of using your voice and body language to set clear limits for the students. It’s how teachers get misbehaving students to stop misbehaving from across the room.
Now the 1st class passengers will be able to fully enjoy the screams of toddlers.
Er, if you whisper at someone while they’re asleep, either they don’t hear you, or you wake them up anyway. I don’t see what difference this makes unless the other option was being (literally) rudely awakened.
I would assume that the whispering is meant for talking to awake passengers while not waking other nearby passengers who were asleep.
Source: TFA
“… the crew are now trained to whisper at tones between twenty and thirty decibels due to its calming effect and the fact that it won’t disturb other passengers whilst lights are out.“
Upper Class Dream Suite
More privilege for the 1%. ::sigh::
More training for a function that should not even exist….but oh how will I ever learn how to buckle my set belt /s
Psst… is that your mom on board?
BOMB??!!!!!!!!!!!!
Really? There are people in this country who consider themselves “professional whisper coaches”?
Don’t worry, I always make a point of “mistakenly” going to use the first class bathroom. When I get turned away, I take it upon myself to wake up all of the richies with a loud “Oh, I’m SO SORRY!”
Haha! Serves them right for spending more money than me.
Do I get a free ticket if the whisper at 31 decibels??
I want to try the “”could you speak up” I can’t hear you
dear” trick and see how they handle. Knowing how
stupid and inept Virgin American is, they will probably
issue pad and pencils to the crew including the crew
in the cockpit so they can write and distribute notes
that say: “Assume the brace position and kiss your
*ss goodbye!”
Okay, nit-pickers, “Virgin Atlantic” it is. And be sure, it ain’t no virgin.
Whilst lights are not on,
Whisper whilst addressing those
Who fly upper class.
Whilst.
Um, this is Virgin Atlantic, the (very good) int’l carrier based out of the UK. Virgin America is the US domestic option, which is kind of a “cooler” version of JetBlue.
I’m assuming you mean Virgin Atlantic?
Although Virgin America getting lie-flat seats would be quite awesome.
They shall be called “Virgin Whisperers”