Wednesday, August 29, 2012

  Longest career as a Flight attendant: Ron Akana sets world record (VIDEO)

HONOLULU, USA -- Eighty-three-year-old Ron Akana from Boulder, Colo., finished his career as a flight attendant over the weekend on a United Airlines flight from Denver to Kauai, setting the world record for the Longest career as a flight attendant, according to the World Record Academy: www.worldrecordacademy.com/.

  Photo: Flight attendant Ron Akana, 83, has landed a place in the Book of Records after spending 63 years in the sky. Photo: The New York Times. ( enlarge photo )

The Guinness world record for the longest time an individual has worked for the same company is 80 years, a record set by Thomas Stoddard (b. 1912) who started working at Speakman Company located in Wilmington, Delaware, USA, on 16 February 1928 as a mail boy until his retirement in 2008 as a member of the Board of Directors.

Guinness World Records also recognized the world record for the Oldest Volunteer, set by Violet Robbins, who was a volunteer at the Prince of Wales Hospital, in Randwick, Sydney Australia, aged 107 years 11 months 25 days .

  Ron Akana, 83, worked his last route over the weekend on a United Airlines flight from Denver to Kauai, ending his career in the state where it began.

  Passengers aboard the trip to Akana's professional final destination heard an announcement marking his longevity and wrote him well-wishes.

  Hawaii, however, wasn't his final stop. His destination was retirement in Boulder, Colo., where he has been living since 2002 to be closer to his grandchildren.

  To get a sense of how long he's been in the air, consider that if his 200 million miles counted toward United's frequent flyer program, he could treat the entire town of Big Rock, Ill., population 1,138, to a first class trip from Chicago to Honolulu and back -- then once a month for the next 12 years, he'd still have enough miles to travel with his wife, Elizabeth, anywhere they want in the continental U.S.

   Over the years, he's seen it all.    Passengers would dress up, not down. Think suits, not flip-flops. Smoking was no big deal, not a federal offence.

  Over time, though, things changed. The meal service became better. No more smoke. In-flight movies, which he said started to be shown seven or eight years after he began his career. And, of course, tight security after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

  The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports that Akana says he decided to retire when he was offered a buyout. He was one of the first male flight attendants at United.

  He returned to his home in Colorado and plans to spend his retirement travelling. He spent his first few days of retirement writing thank-you notes to well-wishers.

  While he's now retired, Akana is not done flying. From now on, his wife will be joining him.

  "I got terrific travel privileges," he said, adding: "There's a lot to be seen."