Narrative:

I was commuting home and was the 4th jumpseat rider. The flight was completely full; and there were also two flight deck jumpseaters. One was another air carrier's employee the other was a company employee. The seatbelt sign was on the entire flight; and it was quite bumpy most of the way. The 'C' flight attendant told me that before we departed; the captain had asked about sending back one of the jumpseaters during the flight. The 'C' flight attendant had told the captain that we were full and we already had someone flying 4th so there wouldn't be a place for the flight deck jumpseater to go. During the flight; the captain still wanted to send back one of the jupmseaters. He sent back the other air carrier's employee who was dressed in street clothes. I was sitting on the forward jumpseat; and the other air carrier's employee came out and sat down next to me. I asked him to put in his identification badge so at least he looked like he wasn't a passenger sitting on the jumpseat. Where was the 'a' flight attendant supposed to go if there was turbulence? There was no place for her to secure herself. I offered to go stand in the back galley and let her sit down; but she declined. I was also concerned about a decompression since there only two masks above the jumpseats. The captain is not a small man; and I understand how tight it is in the flight deck with four people. However; this situation could have been handled better. There aren't any masks in the lavatories for us to grab. If we depressurized; how long do you think it would take to grab a pob from the compartment and don it all while the plane is in an emergency descent? If the captain feels that he or she will be too uncomfortable; they should deny one of the flight deck jumpseaters a seat on the flight deck. We should not be put in this unsafe situation ever again.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Of two cockpit jumpseat riders; one is sent aft during the flight to ease cramped conditions; which caused a problem in the already full main cabin.

Narrative: I was commuting home and was the 4th jumpseat rider. The flight was completely full; and there were also two flight deck jumpseaters. One was another Air Carrier's employee the other was a company employee. The seatbelt sign was on the entire flight; and it was quite bumpy most of the way. The 'C' Flight Attendant told me that before we departed; the Captain had asked about sending back one of the jumpseaters during the flight. The 'C' Flight Attendant had told the Captain that we were full and we already had someone flying 4th so there wouldn't be a place for the flight deck jumpseater to go. During the flight; the Captain still wanted to send back one of the jupmseaters. He sent back the other Air Carrier's employee who was dressed in street clothes. I was sitting on the forward jumpseat; and the other Air Carrier's employee came out and sat down next to me. I asked him to put in his ID badge so at least he looked like he wasn't a passenger sitting on the jumpseat. Where was the 'A' Flight Attendant supposed to go if there was turbulence? There was no place for her to secure herself. I offered to go stand in the back galley and let her sit down; but she declined. I was also concerned about a decompression since there only two masks above the jumpseats. The Captain is not a small man; and I understand how tight it is in the flight deck with four people. However; this situation could have been handled better. There aren't any masks in the lavatories for us to grab. If we depressurized; how long do you think it would take to grab a POB from the compartment and don it all while the plane is in an emergency descent? If the Captain feels that he or she will be too uncomfortable; they should deny one of the flight deck jumpseaters a seat on the flight deck. We should not be put in this unsafe situation ever again.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.