Marist College
Flight Attendant Tūmau Waka Rererangi
Flight attendants make sure that passengers travelling in aeroplanes are safe and comfortable.
Flight attendants may do some or all of the following:
- look after passengers during flights
- check emergency and safety equipment before each flight
- prepare and check the catering, bar and cabin before each flight
- greet passengers, help them stow their luggage and check that they are seated safely
- demonstrate aircraft emergency procedures and safety features to passengers
- serve and clear away food and drinks
- use their knowledge of first aid to help sick passengers.
Physical Requirements
Depending on the airline, flight attendants may need to:
- pass a lift and reach test, which usually requires flight attendants to be between 160 and 185 centimetres tall, and able to lift heavy bags and emergency equipment
- pass a medical exam
- be able to swim 50 metres under 2 minutes unaided
- have a certain standard of eyesight to carry out emergency procedures without glasses.
Useful Experience
Useful experience for flight attendants includes:
- customer service
- nursing
- teaching
- nannying
- tourism or hospitality work
- work in a travel agency
- work that involves speaking another language.
Personal Qualities
Flight attendants need to be:
- customer-focused and friendly
- good communicators
- able to relate to people from a range of cultures and backgrounds
- responsible and professional
- resilient and calm in stressful situations
- able to work well in a team
- organised, resourceful and alert.
Skills
Flight attendants need to have:
- knowledge of flight and emergency procedures
- ability to operate emergency equipment, such as defibrillators
- hospitality skills for serving food and drinks
- strong customer service skills
- first aid and medical skills
- ability to assist people with special needs, such as young children or people with disabilities.
Conditions
Flight attendants:
- do shift work, including evenings, weekends and public holidays. International flight attendants may be rostered up to 18 hours a shift, and may spend many days away from home depending on where they are flying
- work at altitude, often in cramped conditions
- may work in conditions that are uncomfortable or dangerous, and may have to deal with stressful or difficult situations such as turbulence
- travel locally or internationally.
Subject Recommendations
You usually don’t need specific NCEA levels for this job. However, languages and English are useful.
Related Courses
Flight Attendants can earn around $54K-$90K per year.
Pay for flight attendants varies depending on whether they work on domestic, trans-Tasman or international flights.
- Flight attendants usually earn between $54,000 and $90,000 a year.
- Flight attendants can earn between $48,000 and $120,000 a year.
- Flight attendants may also receive meal, accommodation, uniform and grooming allowances.
Source: TEC research.
Flight attendants usually progress from working on domestic flights to working on international flights, or into senior roles such as lead flight attendant or purser.
They may also choose to transfer to ground-based jobs such as check-in agent, or customer service roles.
Years Of Training
<1 year of training required.You need to train on the job to become a flight attendant.
You need:
- to complete a training course
- to have at least 18 months' experience in a customer-facing role
- to pass ability tests
- to pass a security check
- to pass a medical assessment
- to be able to swim 50 metres in under 2 minutes and tread water for 1 minute.
You may need:
- to be over 18 years old
- to have a valid passport
- a New Zealand Certificate in Aviation (Flight Attendant) (Level 4).
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