Hello and welcome to my Burton Flight Attendant snowboard review.
In this review I will take a look at the Flight Attendant as a Freeride snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Flight Attendant a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and also see how it compares with other Freeride snowboards.
Note: The 2024 model was the last released model of the Flight Attendant.
Overall Rating
Board: Burton Flight Attendant 2024
Price: $619 (USD recommended retail)
Style: Freeride
Flex Rating: Mid-Stiff
Flex Feel: Mid-Stiff (7.5/10)
Rating Score: 86.4/100
Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards
Of the 35 current model freeride snowboards that we tested:
❄️ The Flight Attendant ranked 5th out of 35
Overview of the Flight Attendant’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Flight Attendant’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
STYLE:
FREERIDE
PRICE:
$619 - BUYING OPTIONS
$619 - BUYING OPTIONS
Ability Level:
flex:
feel:
DAMPNESS:
SMOOTH /SNAPPY:
Playful /aggressive:
Edge-hold:
camber profile:
DIRECTIONTAL HYBRID CAMBER - Burton's "Directional Camber"
SHAPE:
setback stance:
SETBACK 1.5" (35mm)
BASE:
Sintered | Burton's "Sintered WFO"
weight:
JUST A TOUCH HEAVIER THAN normal
Camber Height:
8mm
Sizing
LENGTH (cm) | Waist Width (mm) | Rec Rider Weight (lb) | Rec Rider Weight (kg) |
---|---|---|---|
152 | 250 | 120-180 | 54-82 |
156 | 254 | 150-200 | 68-91 |
159 | 256 | 150-200 | 68-91 |
162 | 258 | 180-260 | 82-118 |
168 | 265 | 180-260 | 82-118 |
156W | 262 | 150-200 | 68-91 |
159W | 264 | 150-200 | 68-91 |
162W | 266 | 180-260 | 82-118 |
Who is the Flight Attendant Most Suited To?
The Flight Attendant is best suited to someone who wants a board that excels at powder, carving and bombing. But something that's not completely unrelenting.
Even better if you like to also hit jumps in the park from time to time - and best suited to bigger jumps and straight airs, and not as good for ollies, side-hits and spin tricks (if you're landing or taking off switch).
Definitely not a board for beginners and even intermediate might find it a bit much board. Best suited to advanced to expert riders.
THE Flight Attendant IN MORE DETAIL
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Flight Attendant is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: Burton Flight Attendant 2024, 159cm (256mm waist width)
Date: March 9, 2023
Conditions
High cloud with some blue. Sun came through at times.
Temperature was around 0°C (39°F) - and -6°C (37°F) with wind chill in morning and 1°C (41°F) (and -4°C (39°F) with wind) in the afternoon.
Easterly winds morning at 15kph (10mph) morning and NEE at 15kph (10mph) in the afternoon.
24 hour snow: 0.4" (1cm)
48 hour snow: 0.8" (2cm)
7 day snow: 13" (33cm)
On groomer: Hard packed but not icy. Got a little softer as the day went on, but never went to the point of getting slushy or anything.
Off groomer: A little icy/crunchy in places but doable.
Set Up
Bindings angles: +15/-15
Stance width: 22″ (560mm)
Stance Setback: Setback 1.5" (35mm)
Width at Inserts: 10.5" (267mm) at front insert and 10.5" (267.5mm) at back insert.
Rider Height: 6'0"
Rider Weight: 180lbs
Rider Boot Size: US9.5 Adidas Response ADV
Bindings Used: Burton Malavita, M
Weight: 6lbs 11oz (3020grams)
Weight per cm: 18.99 grams/cm
Average Weight per cm: 18.71 grams/cm*
*based on a sample size of around 250 models that I’ve weighed in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024 models. The Flight Attendant was a touch heavier than normal on the scales, but really pretty much average. On snow felt just a little heavier than normal but not by very much.
Powder
Whilst there was technically a little snow overnight, didn't notice it. Was a hard pack day. But based on feel, previous experience with the board and its specs, it will be a good board in powder.
It has rocker leading up to the nose, a tapered directional shape and a 1.5" setback, all helping it's powder performance.
Carving
I found you could lay down a really nice deep aggressive carve on this board. It felt pretty darn good to carve with.
Turning
Ease of Turns/Slashing: It takes some effort to initiate turns on, particularly if you're riding slower. It's not like a tank or anything, but it's not effortless either.
Maneuverability at slow speeds (nimbleness): Decent enough, when you put in the effort and lean into it. Not effortless though. You can get it going edge-to-edge fairly quickly, even when riding slow, but you've got to put some energy into it.
Catchiness: Not ultra catchy or anything, but there is some catchiness to it.
Speed
Felt at its best at speed and was nice and fast and nice and stable once getting up to speed.
Uneven Terrain
Crud: Can smash through crud pretty well. It's got a damper/heavier/stiffer feel to it and that helps keep it from getting thrown around too easily.
Trees/Bumps: Can weave through trees well, but it's something that I found took quite a bit of effort. It can do it for sure and do it pretty well, but it's certainly not effortless.
Jumps
Overall really quite nice for jumps. It's not something that those new to jumping would find easy to jump on, but works well for more experienced jumpers. Really good pop, when you put in the effort.
Pop: Gotta muscle it. Doesn't come easy. But when you do put some oomph into it, there's a really good amount of total pop there.
Approach: Nice and stable for faster approaches. Not ideal, though also not terrible for making adjustments and speed checking.
Landing: Nice and solid. Enough tail to make tail heavy landings not so bad, but not ideal to land tail heavy on it.
Side-hits: It wouldn't be my first choice for side-hits. I prefer something a little more nimble and with easier access pop. But it wasn't bad.
Small jumps/Big jumps: Best suited for bigger jumps, for more experienced jumpers, when you require faster approaches and a solid platform to land big air. But can handle smaller jumps as well of course.
Switch
It's not the ideal board for riding switch or anything and no surprises given its specs. But it's doable. Transitions could feel a little catchy at times, but weren't too bad.
Butters
Takes quite a bit of effort to get this board to press. More flex in nose than tail. Takes quite the muscling to press tail.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
RATING | SCORE WEIGHTING | |
---|---|---|
POWDER | 4.0 | 20/25 |
SPEED | 4.5 | 18/20 |
CARVING | 4.5 | 13.5/15 |
TURNS/SLASHING | 3.5 | 7/10 |
CRUD/CHUNDER | 4.0 | 8/10 |
TREES/BUMPS | 3.5 | 7/10 |
JUMPS | 3.5 | 3.5/5 |
SWITCH | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
TOTAL after normalizing | 86.4/100 |
The Flight Attendant is a smooth, damp ride that can smash through crud well, bomb stably at speed and lay down a great carve. It's also good for those who want to be able to take advantage of powder when those powder days strike.
Would make a good daily driver for an advanced to expert rider who's looking for a stiffer/burlier board to charge, seek powder when it's there and might want to hit jumps from time to time too. But not as well suited if you also want to be able to butter/play around at times.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you’re interested in learning more about the Flight Attendant or want to research current prices and availability, check out the links below.
If you want to check out some other freeride options or see how the FA compares to other freeride decks check out the next link.
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