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Cabin crew

Alternative titles for this job include Flight attendant, air steward, air stewardess

Air cabin crew make sure that airline passengers have a safe, comfortable and pleasant flight.

Average salary (a year)

£19,000 Starter

to

£28,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

30 to 40 week

You could work

evenings / weekends / bank holidays away from home

Meet Richard and Wen

Richard and Wen talk about the different responsibilities they have as cabin crew.

1 minute 35 second watch

View transcript

Richard: My name is Richard. I'm an inflight manager and I'm part of Heathrow cabin crew. So the skills important to be cabin crew is being kind, resilience and wanting to please and create a memorable experience to both our customers and our colleagues alike.

Wen: Hello. My name is Wen Wigglesworth. I'm Heathrow cabin crew and I'm based in London Heathrow Airport. As a cabin crew, we fly around the world and make sure we provide excellent customer service to the passengers and bring them safe to their destinations and safe bring them home.

Richard: So as an inflight manager, I'm responsible for conducting a briefing and being responsible for our cabin crew and all of our customers onboard the aircraft. I will allocate the working positions, and I will ensure that the safety tasks are complete, and that we're ready to board the aircraft and deliver excellent customer service to our customers.

Wen: To be cabin crew, because you're always working as a team, you have to be a team player and you will be working with different people every day.

Richard: I think the travel, the element of travel is something that still excites me to this day. Flying to new destinations, meeting people.

Wen: We have the ability to make someone's day. I would say be yourself, be ourselves, to treat people with kindness, with empathy and put the smile on their face.

How to become

Explore the different ways to get into this role.

How to become

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • applying directly

College

You could do a college course like an introduction to cabin crew, or study a cabin crew module as part of a broader travel and tourism course.

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

More Information

Apprenticeship

You could apply to do a Cabin Crew Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship.

This will take around 12 months to complete. You'll do on-the-job training and spend time with a college or training provider.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship

More Information

Direct Application

You could apply directly to airlines for a cabin crew job. Airlines set their own entry requirements, which can vary.

You'll be expected to have a good standard of spoken and written English. You'll also need to show that you have great customer service skills, so experience of working directly with the public is useful.

Some airlines and private training providers run short cabin crew preparation courses, which may help your chances of getting a job, though these are not essential.

More Information

Career tips

Certain airlines have online career quizzes you can do to test whether working as air cabin crew is for you, before you apply.

Being able to speak a second language may give you an advantage for some jobs.

What it takes

Find out what skills you’ll use in this role.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • customer service skills for working with passengers
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • to enjoy working with other people
  • knowledge of public safety and security
  • sensitivity and understanding for dealing with customers’ needs
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

You'll also be expected to:

  • have a valid passport with no restrictions for the countries the airline travels to
  • live within 90 minutes of your base
  • have good written and spoken English

Many airlines ask that you're able to swim up to 25 metres.

There are also rules about height and weight, which vary between airlines. As a general guide, most look for people between 5ft 2in (157cm) and 6ft 2in (188cm), with weight in proportion to height.

What you’ll do

Discover the day to day tasks you’ll do in this role.

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

Before a flight you could:

  • attend a staff meeting about the route and schedule
  • check onboard supplies and make sure safety equipment is working properly
  • greet passengers and check documents
  • demonstrate safety and emergency procedures

During a flight, you would:

  • make sure passengers are comfortable and respond to any requests
  • check dietary needs, serve food and drinks, and sell duty-free items
  • make announcements
  • give first aid and reassure passengers in the event of an emergency

At the end of a flight you'll:

  • make sure passengers leave the plane safely with all luggage items
  • complete a flight report and details of any incidents
  • add up payments for food and drinks orders, and duty-free sales

Working environment

You could work on an aircraft.

Your working environment may be physically demanding and cramped.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

With experience, you could progress to cabin crew supervisor or a senior air cabin crew role.

You could also work in a ground-based job, like cabin crew training, recruitment, passenger services, marketing and sales.

Current opportunities

Find apprenticeships, courses and jobs available near you.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

RAF Air & Ground Steward - Full Time Career with Apprenticeship

  • Wage: £25,200 a year Annually
  • Location: Waterwells Drive, Gloucester, Gloucestershire

RAF Air & Ground Steward - Full Time Career with Apprenticeship

  • Wage: £25,200 a year Annually
  • Location: Leconfield, Beverley
Find apprenticeships near you

Courses In England

Are you interested in becoming cabin crew?

Search for training courses near you.

Jobs In the United Kingdom

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