How to become a Flight Attendant

£12,000/y

avg. starting salary

Want to reach new heights in your career? You should become a Flight Attendant… Flight Attendants look after the general health, safety, and well-being of airline passengers during flights, ensuring everyone on board has a comfortable trip. They also deal with any problems or requests passengers may have, whilst adhering to and enforcing all safety regulations. Their working hours vary depending on the length of the flight, with long haul flights often requiring overnight stays in hotel accommodation. Typical duties for a Flight Attendant generally include:

Greeting passengers and checking boarding passes as they enter and exit the plane
Ensuring the plane is clean and tidy
Delivering food and drink and selling duty free products
Demonstrating safety routines
Checking seatbelts and ensuring baggage is securely stored
Making sure all safety equipment is in working order
Administering first aid if needed
Writing flight reports

To be a successful Flight Attendant, you must have excellent customer service and teamwork skills, combined with an ability to remain calm and make quick decisions in difficult situations or emergencies. You will spend a lot of time on your feet and lifting luggage, so a high level of stamina and dexterity is important. Height and weight restrictions will also apply (dependent on the airline), and having good eyesight, a valid passport, and the ability to swim well in case of emergency are all essential attributes to have. A Flight Attendant will additionally need to be:

A confident flyer
Attentive and empathetic
A great communicator
Approachable
Patient
Presented professionally, with no visible tattoos or piercings
Able to work long hours on a flexible schedule (often on weekends and public holidays)

Junior Flight Attendant

Up to £12,000

Flight Attendant

Up to £18,000

Senior Flight Attendant

Up to £25,000

"Being a Flight Attendant is really fun most of the time, and I have a great relationship with all of my fellow cabin crew. However, the job can be tiring, and it’s probably not suitable to those who get homesick easily, and struggle dealing with difficult customers. Or, you know, require regular sleeping patterns (oh, hey there jetlag). All in all though, I think the pros outweigh the cons, and the variety of the job and constant interaction with lots of new and different people is really exciting. Long-haul flights can be quite draining, but there’ll often be time in between shifts where I get four or five days off – and it’s an added bonus when these days are spent somewhere hot, near a beach…"

Get qualified

You won’t need a degree to become a Flight Attendant, but good GCSE qualifications (at least a C in Maths and English) are normally required. Previous experience in customer based roles, and/or study in related fields such as languages, travel and tourism, and hospitality, will also increase your chances of being considered.

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