You might think that a girl who was born in Panama, schooled in California, New Jersey and Spain and who has also lived in the Philippines might want to plant herself somewhere and keep her feet on the ground. Not Ester Cordet. True, since 1967, she's resided in San Diego. But "Home," as Ester says, "is the skies." The skies of Pacific Southwest Airlines, to be exact, for whom she works as a stewardess. "I take a lot of pride in my job," an attitude that's impressed her employers enough to promote her to in-flight instructor and assign her additional duties as a public-relations representative in her off hours. "I love everything about flying," she says. "There's always something new to learn." Apparently so, because what's Ester's favorite free-time activity? Flying lessons. "Unfortunately," she says, "I haven't taken all the instruction I need" -- the principal reason being those aforementioned PR dates. Which have led to several free-lance modeling jobs (including a pair of TV commercials), which, in turn, have revived in Ester a long-dormant desire to act. "In high school," she recalls, "I was a member of an acting group. Many of my classmates, like me, were children of Servicemen and, although we read more serious things, we most enjoyed putting on Service comedies." Not surprisingly, Ester's dramatic preferences tend toward the comic. "I'd prefer nothing better than someday to be described by movie reviewers as 'a gifted comic actress' like Barbara Streisand." And, like Streisand, Ester wants to sing, although she admits she'll "need a lot of voice coaching" before she'll ever give singing or musical comedy a whirl. "Still," she says, "I'd have an advantage over other beginning movie actresses: I wouldn't mind starting work at six a.m. As a stewardess, I've done that many times." And, after all, the name Ester does mean star.

--- Photography by Richard Fegley

AMBITIONS
To act in a situation comedy or model for Vogue, Harper's Bazaar or other fashion magazines.

TURN-ONS
Flying, silver-gray haired men.

TURN-OFFS
Ignorance, people who don't think before they talk.

PEOPLE I ADMIRE
Henry Kissinger and Golda Meir. He's a great diplomat and a man for all seasons. She sets a standard for women of the world.

DID YOU KNOW?
I worked for a year as a beautician in Spain. I'm bilingual, so I also did some interpreting while I lived there.

FAMILY LIFE
I'm the oldest of five sisters. My brother-in-law received the Congressional Medal of Honor for bravery in Vietnam.

I'D LOVE TO TAKE
Flying lessons.

MY IDEAL EVENING:
Is staying home and watching the stars, then roasting marshmallows in the fireplace.