Israel’s First Deaf Flight Attendant

Israel News - Drama teacher seeking to become Israel’s first Deaf flight attendant. The 51-year-old has been trying to persuade El Al to hire him for two years, but the airline has balked due to safety concerns.



TEL AVIV, Israel - A 51-year-old man's quest to be Israel's first hard-of-hearing flight attendant fell on deaf hears this week after the Civil Aviation Authority refused to intervene.



Deaf drama teacher Shuki Assouline has been engaged in active talks with El Al for the past two years to convince the airline to hire him as flight attendant. However, the airline determined that it could not employ him as an attendant due to safety concerns.



The CAA declined a request to weigh in on the matter this week, saying that according to regulations a deaf person could not serve as a pilot, but that it does not maintain any medical guidelines for flight attendants. Instead, the CAA said commercial airlines were free to set their own standards and that Assouline should contact the airlines directly.



"I want to make history and become Israel's first Deaf flight attendant," Assouline said in an interview conducted by email. "For 51 years I have known that I am meant to be an El Al flight attendant." ... Read more http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-1.551478

Deaf Scottish Yachtsman Receives Hero's Welcome

VIDEO: Deaf sailor receives hero's welcome. The first Deaf person to have sailed single-handed around the world, passing all five capes, has returned home to a hero's welcome.



SOUTH AYRSHIRE, SCOTLAND - Gerry Hughes, 55, fulfilled his boyhood dream of sailing past the capes, racking up 32,000 miles on an eight-month voyage.



Hundreds of members of the Deaf community turned out at Troon harbour in South Ayrshire to congratulate the father-of-two, who was born without hearing.



The teacher, from Glasgow, is one of around 300 people to have completed the feat, joining a list of successful solo-circumnavigators which includes Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and Sir Frances Chichester.



After hugging his tearful wife Kay, 47, on his arrival, he swapped the champagne popped in his honour for a pint of his favourite Guinness.

He spoke of a great sense of achievement, having fulfilled an ambition he has had since he was 14.



Stormy weather often created tough sailing conditions, causing him to capsize at one stage. But he cited problems with electronic equipment, not his lack of hearing, as the biggest challenge of the trip.



Speaking through a sign language interpreter, he said: "Being Deaf, the only thing I didn't have was the VHF radio contact. I feel vibrations. That's how the boat communicates with me. I'd be asleep and I knew that winds were coming. Other people can hear those things but I was able to compensate in that way. ...READ MORE: http://www.expressandstar.com/news/uk-news/2013/05/08/deaf-sailor-receives-heros-welcome/, Visit http://www.gerrysmhughes.com for more information.



Related Post: Scottish Yachtsman Become The First Deaf Person To Sail Non Stop Around The World