On May 5, 1939, the first passenger flight with the participation of a stewardess was performed in the USSR. She was 20-year-old Muscovite Elza Gorodetskaya. The first flight with the participation of Elza Gorodetskaya was performed on the route Moscow – Ashgabat on the airplane PS-84, which are better known as 21-seater Li-2. The flight lasted 13 hours with two intermediate landings.
Li-2 airplanes did not have the level of comfort that came later. Elsa Gorodetskaya had to work in choppy weather, in the cold, in rain and snow, and most airfields had no artificial surface, and her duties included cleaning the passenger cabin, preparing snacks and helping the crew to refuel the plane.
In those days, passenger airplanes were small and there was no need for flight attendants. But as the size of airliners increased and passenger comfort improved, the USSR Civil Air Fleet Main Directorate decided to introduce the position of a stewardess.
The duties of the first Soviet stewardess included purchasing and loading food and dishes on board, cleaning the cabin, greeting passengers and introducing the crew. Officially the position of a flight attendant did not exist at that time, so Elsa Gorodetskaya was registered according to one data as a storekeeper, according to another – as a barmaid.
For two months Elsa Gorodetskaya was the only flight attendant in the USSR. Later in 1939, the profession of flight attendant was officially approved, and girls were hired as stewardesses of Aeroflot. When hiring, advantage was given to girls with medical education. The uniform of stewardesses was not regulated at that time, but a white top, dark bottom and strictly tailored blouses were mandatory.
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