Pregnant stewardess--should she fly?

There is much pressure on the airlines to allow stewardesses to fly while pregnant. Some of them want to fly in quite advanced stages of pregnancy. This paper offers a survey of the problem, the hazards that may occur and some guidelines for the physician. The author outlines the normal changes to be expected with advancing pregnancy and those factors that could have an adverse effect on a pregnant stewardess and her fetus, such as hypoxia, trauma, abortion, the hazards of travel, and flying itself. Certain legal problems of unemployment and medical disability also are discussed. Travel alone offers no real danger to the pregnant stewardess in the first trimester of pregnancy; however, because of the changing mechanics of her size, posture, and increasing unsteadiness, it would be wisest to require a pregnant stewardess to cease flying at 13 weeks, with an absolute prohibition of flying after the 20th week.