My daughter wants to be cabin crew! Info please!

[Flock1]

Hi,

Firstly, I'd like to aplogise of these questions have been asked again, but after a quick search, I though it might be easier to ask direct.

Okay, here's the deal. My daughter is going to be 18 in 3 months time and has decided she wants to be cabin crew. I've told her its not going to be sipping cocktails in Mexico, with a mini holiday in between flights, and told her she'll be doing shorthaul, probably 4 sectors a day and will be worked hard. She still really wants to do it.

She meets all the minimum requirements except for the age (at the moment)

We live in Brighouse, West Yorkshire, so her chosen base would be Leeds or Manchester.

So what are the chances of her getting these bases. I know it depends on the airline, but is there are possibility she would get either of these airports at the start of her career.

Also, what will her salary be? BMI state on their website that the basic is just over 11K. Will she get flight pay on top of this? Do all airlines offer flight pay?

She has looked at Easyjet, BMI, Thomas Cook, Ryanair and would work for any of them.

Are there any more she could look at. BA? Jet2? Flybe?

Also, will her being only 18 have any bearing on her application?

Finally, any other tips/hints/insider info?

Regards

Flock1

[boardingpass]

If she really wants to be cabin crew, she shouldn't limit herself to being based at those specific airports. Why not apply to as many airlines as possible and see what comes up? She might even like to consider other countries! One of the benefits of being crew is that the distances from family/friends/home are much shorter!

Like all jobs, it's not her age as such, but her work experience, so if she's never had a job before, she might find it more difficult... If she's worked in customer service, retail, waitressing, St John's ambulance volunteers or any position of responsibility, it's all counted in her favour. Also, any foreign language skills will be an advantage.

Regarding pay, the basic is just that, basic. She'll get more for flights and allowances away from home etc, all depending on how much she works and the airline and tax etc which will be explained by the airline.

She will need to have good people skills, as she'll be working with the public, and good team skills, good communication skills and she'll need to be able to work under pressure. She'll be trained in safety, medical and other emergency situations so will need to be a responsible person and see the job as a profession, even if she's not planning on doing it until she retires. She'll also go through various medical and security screening procedures herself.

Otherwise, wish her well on her adventures!

[6chimes]

I'm sure Flock does not want to have his 'genuine' question sabotaged with our eternal argument which has truths on both sides. So lets help his daughter get involved with them herself ......... from the inside!

I don't need to tell anyone how difficult times are at the moment and it seems that the Charter outfits are the ones recruiting right now on short term contracts. But that would give her a job at the very least and some experience and if a permanent contract with another carrier comes up she is still free to go for it. Thomas Cook I believe are recruiting. Charters are great fun, hard work and I have many friends that have worked there for years.

The LOCO's are very hard work, yes it is generally 4 sector days and they are nearly always recruiting. Beware of hidden costs as some carriers do charge for training courses and uniforms. Of course your daughter will be prepared to pay for her training as it is a job, although I have to say that I know of no existing crew that would ever pay for those unless desperate.

It does not matter what sector of the airlines your daughter works for as we always really enjoy the people we work with and our days at work can be mostly fun. Yes there are downsides, probably to many to mention here but the plus's outweigh the negatives for most.

As for getting into an airport, there is no higher standards at higher profile airports.

I would suggest having a look on aviationjobsearch and trawling the airline web sites for careers/vacancies and contacting them directly.

In general (not all) LOCO's offer good earning potential with flight pay and commission on goods sold on the flight and minimal night stops.

Charters offer good flight pay and commission, depending on the carrier the opportunity to night stop will vary. Nightstopping does significantly affect your earnings as you are 'on the clock' for many more hours. Some do have a long haul service so yes, you could end up in Mexico for a week sipping cocktails. But you will have to do the weeks of long 'there and backs' in between those trips.

Scheduled carriers often offer better initial contracts although that will change. If they are mainly domestic/European then there should be some opportunity to boost income with nightstops. If there is long haul then longer trips may be possible although you may have to wait awhile to get onto the a/c that operates those flights.

At interview they just want to see how you interact with others, can you listen, use names, generous, empathetic, honest etc. You will need to answer questions on how you have dealt with situations both positively and negatively. Almost certainly you will need some customer service experience for those straight out of school even a saturday job will help. All airlines have a slightly different criteria so any rejections should be used as experience and not as a sign that you are not cut out for the job. You will find many crew that have tried several airlines before getting a job.

Hope that helps.

6

[Consol]

I sent you a PM Flock, have a look.

[Flintstone]

Flock. By all means have your daughter follow the advice given by the grown-ups in here but as a future goal she might like to consider the corporate (bizjet) sector. It's generally less hectic than flogging Pringles and scratchcards on a low cost airline, much more civilised and almost always better paid. She won't get into it without experience of working in business or first class in a 'proper' airline though but it's worth it.

As for the bitchfight about what cabin crew do it depends how you define 'primary'. If you consider primary to equal 'spend most time doing' (chucking biccies and dealing with ignorant passengers) then you're a water/waitress. If you consider primary to be 'why I have to be here' then it's (regulated) safety.


Edit: While it's true that some CC may have achieved a higher level of education than the flight crew they'd be an exception. FC certainly require a higher level of training and qualification to do their jobs. Either way they're both meant to be on the same team, not that you'd know from reading some of the comments here.

[DutchBird-757]

Flock1. One advise from me. Make sure she's got another degree to fall back onto. CC doesn't pay well and I've heard many who are intrested in a change of carreer for a variety of reasons. (due lack of challenge, worked to the max, almost no social life anymore due all the nightstops and low pay)

Everyone's different but this is what I've heard lately amongst some of our CC.

[poledancer]

Flock1:

In relation to your question,bet you wished you had never asked now:bored:!

I was also in the same position as your daughter, not yet 18 but wanted to be cabin crew etc..the only 2 airlines that take on at 18 as far as I know are Easyjet and Ryanair. Ryanair definetly has a base at Manchester, and Easyjet if not Manchester definetly have a Liverpool base. If I were you, I would choose to apply to Easyjet out of these 2 as you go through a training school, third party for Ryanair, therefore you actually PAY for your training course etc and in theses times you are probably not too keen on that! Check out these websites: Cheap flights to Spain, France, Germany, Italy and more - easyJet.com (http://www.easyjet.com), Ryanair.com - Book your cheap flight, hotels, car rental with ryanair.com (http://www.ryanair.com), always keep an eye on Cabin Crew Cabin Crew Jobs Cabin Crew Vacancies Cabin Crew Forum Cabin Crew Careers (http://www.cabincrew.com), Aviation Jobs, Jobs in Aviation, Aviation Jobs London, Aviation Recruitment, AviationJobSearch.com (http://www.aviationjobsearch.com) for all the latest cabin crew vacancies.

She will get a good solid grounding and feel for cabin crew life at Easyjet for example, the shifts, early starts, late finishes, delays. I started at Ryanair, trained when I was 17 but had to wait to turn 18 to fly. She could also try and get a ground job at check in etc now to get her foot into aviation, thats how I done it.

She will then be able to apply for whatever airline she wants as she gets older, and rise through the ranks and as Flintstone says perhaps get into the world of corporate thats also where I am now, and can tell you its the best part of aviation, I have no degree etc, but I am very happy doing this job, its just become a way of life for me now..

All airlines usually pay per diems trip pay etc, training courses last approx 6 weeks cover all the vital parts, core subjects she will have to study , which tea and coffee don't figure massively in, service ofcourse is important but never takes precedence over safety.

If you have any questions please feel free to private mail me x

[Anagard]

Competition for international carriers has increased over the years - while most carriers do not require a college/university or higher level degree, they prefer it. In addition she'll most likely need to show 2 years of customer service experience.. If she's just 18, why not go get a degree/some schooling, and then when she's 21 she'll have a higher chance at getting accepted at an international carrier. By the time she's 21 the industry cycle may be back in a booming stage. Also, she'll have something to fall back on when times get tough or she's had enough fun. Flying is hard work, physically demanding and financially challenging. The glamour of the job fades rather quickly when you're barely earning enough to rent a one bedroom flat. It is rewarding in that you do get to experience the world and for a young person with no financial obligations, its a wonderful adventure. My 2 cents is to get some work experience or schooling first, see how the industry looks within the next year and then weigh her options. :ok: