Flight Attendant: What is the cost of hiring?

What are cabin crew?

Cabin crew are airline professionals responsible for ensuring the comfort, safety and overall experience of passengers during flights. Their duties include conducting safety checks and briefings, serving food and drinks, assisting with requests, enforcing regulations and responding to emergencies. Strong communication and customer service skills are important, alongside the ability to remain calm under pressure.

Why recruit cabin crew?

Cabin crew act as frontline representatives of an airline, offering a level of service and professionalism to elevate the passenger experience from boarding to disembarking. Skilled cabin crew enhance reputation and provide vital support in emergencies. Airlines may need to recruit extra cabin crew when expanding routes, increasing flight frequency, improving service standards or replacing departing staff.

Contributions of a great cabin crew member:

• Creating a positive passenger experience through friendly and attentive customer service
• Responding calmly and knowledgeably to in-flight emergencies and challenging situations
• Communicating professionally and positively with passengers, co-workers and flight crew
• Ensuring compliance with aviation safety and security regulations

Defining your recruitment needs for cabin crew

An airline’s recruitment needs often depend on whether it operates short-haul or long-haul flights or a combination of both, as this often influences the skills and experience required. Employers must also decide whether to recruit experienced crew or provide training for new entrants, taking into account the available budget.

Cabin crew may be employed on a permanent, part-time or seasonal basis, with seasonal staff particularly valuable during peak travel periods such as summer holidays or festive seasons. 

Similar positions to cabin crew include ground staff, who focus on passenger services at the airport such as check-in and boarding, and servers, who also deliver food and drink but in restaurant or event settings rather than on flights.

Another common name for this role is flight attendant.

What are the types of cabin crew?

Cabin crew roles can vary depending on the airline, the type of aircraft and the level of responsibility. Some airlines may have structured hierarchies, while others use more general job titles. Common ranks or titles of cabin crew include:

• Flight attendant: provides in-flight safety briefings, serves food and drinks and assists passengers throughout the journey
• Lead flight attendant or purser: oversees the cabin team, coordinates with the flight deck and ensures service and safety standards are maintained
• Senior cabin crew member: an experienced crew member who supports the purser and may manage a section of the cabin, such as Business Class.
• VIP or corporate flight attendant: works on private jets or with high-net-worth individuals, offering highly personalised service with a focus on discretion

When writing your cabin crew job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on cabin crew jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Cabin crew
• Flight attendant
• Airport
• Air hostess
• Cabin crew opportunity
• Airline
• Aviation
• Retail
• British airways
• Customer service

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Where to find cabin crew?

To find the right cabin crew for your business, consider trying out a few different recruitment strategies:

• Aviation job boards: posting on specialist sites for aviation or the travel industry can help you reach proactive candidates with relevant experience and a passion for flying
• Referrals from your network: reaching out to your professional network or existing employees can point you towards cabin crew candidates with a proven track record. Consider implementing an employee referral programme to encourage participation.
• Aviation training schools: partnering with schools that offer cabin crew training courses can connect you with graduates who are job-ready and already familiar with the foundational demands of the role
• International recruitment: many airlines recruit cabin crew from around the world to reflect their passenger base and improve their multilingual service.
• Post your job online: try posting your cabin crew job on Indeed to find and attract quality cabin crew candidates.

Skills to look for in cabin crew

A successful cabin crew candidate will typically have the following skills and competencies, which may be gained through a variety of experiences, training or education:

• Clear and professional communication skills, delivered in a friendly manner
• Teamwork skills for collaborating with other crew members and the flight deck
• Ability to remain calm under pressure or in an emergency
• Flexibility and adaptability for handling changes to schedules and routes
• Passion for travel and delivering excellent customer service
• In-depth knowledge of airline safety protocols and attention to detail

Writing a cabin crew job description

Now that you know the key skills, salary expectations, popular jobseeker search terms and recruitment insights for cabin crew, you’re ready to write a job description.

A cabin crew job description typically includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position. You may also want to include information about your company culture, benefits and perks to attract candidates to your open role.

Ready to get started? See our full guide for writing cabin crew job descriptions.

Interviewing cabin crew candidates 

Strong candidates for cabin crew positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• How they have delivered exceptional customer service in different situations
• Their understanding of in-flight safety procedures and emergency protocols
• How they handle conflict or challenging behaviour from passengers
• Examples of working as part of a team in a high-pressure environment
• Their experience in working with people from different cultures and backgrounds

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of cabin crew interview questions for examples (with sample answers).