First of all I MUST tell you, that it is actually forbidden to remove the safety cards from the aircraft. But please let me say, that I have already discussed this topic with several pilots and other airline staff, and for collectors, it is not a problem at all to take these cards from the plane. It is not even dangerous for other passengers, who might be involved in an emergency, as the crew members check the existence of these cards after every flight. I also know a lot of other safety card collectors - most of them work in the aviation industry, some of them are flight attendants!

- the beginning -

In 1989 my grandfather gave me my first safety card - it was an United Express Jetstream 41. I was at the age of 6, I didn't know anything about safety cards and of course I didn't think about collecting them. Until 1998, I maybe got three more cards from friends (they knew I am aviation enthusiast and they wanted to give me a souvenir from their flights)
 

This is my grandfather.

He brought me my first safety card in 1992.

Even today, he is one of my biggest supporters and he gets new safety cards for me every month, if he doesn't forget them in the aircraft :-).
 

In 1998, when I was 15 years old, my dad installed an internet connection at home, and I soon found out, that there are people, who collect these cards and even change them in the world wide web. I was fascinated by this idea and I decided to enter the "Safety Card business". I programmed my own website in 1999, where I now present my whole collection as well as the cards I have twice.

I began to trade with people all over the globe, with safety card collectors who are from Australia, USA and Canada as well as from South America, Africa, Russia and Europe of course. I visited several Safety Card conventions and also won some safety card auctions on ebay. Now I have a collection, consisting of approximately 2900 diffferent cards from more than 600 airlines. 

- ? how to collect safety cards ? -

The best way to collect safety cards is to tell all your friends, relatives and family members, your boss as well as your mailman and even your worst enemy to bring you the cards from their flights. Especially when you live in Austria it can easily happen, that you get your fourtiest Austrian Airlines A320 card, but maybe you can change this card with another safety card collector from Brazil against a Varig 737.

Actually it is forbidden to remove the safety card from the plane, but if you ask a flight attendant in a friendly way, you get a brand new one in 99,9% of all cases. 

Trading with other collectors is also a clever method to enlagre your collection. When you have your own website, you can change safety cards with other collectors anywhere in the world.

Another way to get safety cards is to bid on ebay auctions. But it is quite expensive and I bid just on cards, which nobody can get for me anymore, like cards from Pan American Airlines, TWA, Rich International, Sabena, or cards with old colour schemes.

Visiting safety card conventions everywhere in the world is also a very efficient way to increase your collection in size. There you can exchange your cards with other collectors.

The last way I know, how to get safety cards is to contact the airlines. Don't expect too many answers, but some of them are really sympathetic and send you whole sets of brand new cards.

- ? why do I collect safety cards ? -

Sometimes people ask me "Why do you collect safety cards?"
Well... why do people collect stamps, beer mugs, autographs or tin soldiers??
For me safety cards are just souvenirs from my flights and a nice possibilty to strike up international friendships.