Air Carrier Flight Attendant crew reported foul odors initially during taxi and climb which subsided during cruise. The 'sweaty' odor resumed during descent causing the cabin crew to experience multiple physiological symptoms.
Synopsis
Air Carrier Flight Attendant crew reported foul odors initially during taxi and climb which subsided during cruise. The 'sweaty' odor resumed during descent causing the cabin crew to experience multiple physiological symptoms.
Narrative
After takeoff; my [Flight Attendant] C; and I both noticed a foul odor in our galley. To me...the closest thing I could compare it to is it smelled like strong earwax. It was bothering our sinuses some. Moderate smell but very noticeable. I reached for the phone.To call my A; when they called us asking if we were smelling a smell. The pilots chimed in. They smelled it too. It seems the pilots and our A; were not experiencing symptoms but our D; C and I were all experiencing symptoms. Mine were sinus...and also a lightheadedness but not dizzy. Just a 'fuzzy' and 'light 'feeling. Both the odor and symptoms went away on cruise level. All the crew kept in constant contact to check forOdor and symptoms through flight. We thought it was over; but then on descent ...it came back. My symptoms were very odd to me this time around. The left side of my sinuses; head; neck; shoulders; felt odd. My left temple started slowly throbbing like a headache; then behind my left ear as well. My left side ONLY of those areas felt light headed (but not dizzy) and 'fuzzy' is the best term I could use. It wasn't a recognizable feeling to me. It felt very different from my right side. I let my whole crew know as we all were relaying our symptoms.My mouth felt like an odd taste but I can't pinpoint the taste. No usual descriptions of the feelings or taste which is frustrating to not be able to explain. A passenger in the last row spoke up saying 'I smell a smell too and I smelled it on takeoff as well'. Another passenger came back nauseous and went into lavatory to vomit. I could hear her coughing and vomiting. When she came out; A asked her if she's ever experienced air sickness before. She said she has I'm not sure if she really had or was concerned we were concerned she had COVID and not fit to fly and was exposing others. Or if she truly had experienced air sickness before. Name asked her if the smell was making her nauseous. The woman hadn't noticed the smell.When we landed; ground air was attached and my symptoms started going away. Once I was off the plane and in fresh air. I felt better.Please keep that aircraft grounded until you are sure what the problem is and that it's fixed.I liked our constant communication as a crew. We also walked through cabin regularly to see if anyone looked in physical trouble or asked about it...& I like that our Captain contacted Dispatch to keep them in the loop in case things got worse.I'm glad the outgoing crew did not take that plane! Good decision! Safety first!
Second reporter narrative
Our crew experience an air cabin quality event. During taxing out; I started to smell a foul odor. It resembled manure. I mentioned it to the [Flight Attendant] A who said she did not smell anything. We took off and the smell transformed into a sweaty smell/ear wax smell. I started to feel a bit 'out of it'; like I was having an out of body experience/foggy brain. The A noticed the smell and decided to call back to the AFT galley to check on the B and C FAs. Both FAs noticed the smell too. Once we got to 10;000 ft. we discussed further action with the pilots. We continued to monitor each other and the passengers. No one complained of any similar symptoms or smells during the flight. Once on descent we began to smell the odor again. I also smelt the odor around row 15-17. I started to also have a headache during this time. Our crew experience an air cabin quality event. During taxing out; I started to smell a foul odor. It resembled manure. I mentioned it to the A who said she did not smell anything. We took off and the smell transformed into a sweaty smell/ear wax smell. I started to feel a bit 'out of it'; like I was having an out of body experience/foggy brain. The A noticed the smell and decided to call back to the AFT galley to check on the B and C FAs. Both FAs noticed the smell too. Once we got to 10K we discussed further action with the pilots. We continued to monitor each other and the passengers. No one complained of any similar symptoms or smells during the flight. Once on decent we began to smell the odor again. I also smelt the odor around row 15-17. I started to also have a headache during this time.Our crew communicated a lot during the flight and checked on one another and the passengers. I think it's important to not dismiss your symptoms. Communicate how you are feeling.
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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.