B737-700
Flight Attendant Current
Physiological - Other
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness / Injury
General None Reported / Taken
Aircraft; Company Policy; Human Factors
On (date); we were put into an extremely dangerous and potentially life threatening situation; which could potentially result in loss of revenue and very unfavorable word of mouth publicity.Our schedule that day was to deadhead to (city). From there; we were to work to (city) and back and then (city-city-city). After the turn; we were told that we had an aircraft swap. We were to take a B737-700. We were also told that the air conditioner onboard was not working. The flight attendants who brought the plane in and who were deadheading on the flight back told us that the temperature during flight never got below 90 degrees F. This proved to be untrue. The temperature never got below 94 degrees F during the flight. When I asked about why we were going to put our passengers through this; I was told that there were too many inoperative planes in (city we were in) and that if we were to wait for another plane it would take another 2 hours.So; we boarded 130 plus people on a plane with no air conditioning. Among the passengers were an elderly couple; a man who was emaciated from some sort of illness; and a mother taking her lap child (who was running a 103 degree temperature) to a cancer center. I informed operations of the situation with the baby and that's when I was told that they had also voiced concerns about the situation; but to no avail. The operations agent told me that the company representative was insistent that the plane continue.Once we had everyone aboard; the aircraft was extremely hot even with the ground power. And to add insult to injury; we had to wait 10 additional minutes for bags to be loaded.Needless to say; the conditions aboard the plane were nothing short of miserable. The back of the plane was definitely the hottest. Three people vomited during flight and that would include me. Once we arrived in (city); the woman who had the ill baby nearly passed out in her seat; had to be helped off the plane; and needed a wheel chair to get up the jet bridge where she passed out once she was in the terminal. (Flight Attendant name) and I got ice from the aircraft and the operations agent called for the paramedics.I might be able to understand the need to fly this airplane; with near sweat lodge conditions; if it were in a city that had no mechanics; but to have it fly; knowing that the conditions were intolerable; to (city) and then on to (city) and back to (city) shows a lack of respect for the comfort of our passengers and a total disregard to the crew members working the flight. I don't mean to sound like an alarmist; but under such extreme temperatures; tempers can flare and situations can escalate quickly; which at 30;000 FT can prove unsafe for both passengers and crew. Also; the increased chances of heat related illness and/or death for some elderly passengers should have been taken into consideration. Remember the 'like your Mom' situations we were taught? To the person who made the decision to have (aircraft number) fly without air conditioning; I would ask if it was your wife and lap child with a 103 temperature on board would you still have made the same call?
B737-700 Flight Attendant describes a series a series of flights with a malfunctioning air conditioning system and cabin temperatures above 94 degrees.