What Does A Flight Attendant Do (including Their Typical Day at Work)

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Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Flight Attendants

Flight Attendants monitor safety of the aircraft cabin. Provide services to airline passengers, explain safety information, serve food and beverages, and respond to emergency incidents.

Salary
$59150
Becoming One
Medium
Education
Associate's degree
Job Satisfaction
Job Growth

Personality


What they do

Flight Attendants monitor safety of the aircraft cabin. Provide services to airline passengers, explain safety information, serve food and beverages, and respond to emergency incidents.

  • Verify that first aid kits and other emergency equipment, including fire extinguishers and oxygen bottles, are in working order.
  • Direct and assist passengers in emergency procedures, such as evacuating a plane following an emergency landing.
  • Administer first aid to passengers in distress.
  • Announce and demonstrate safety and emergency procedures, such as the use of oxygen masks, seat belts, and life jackets.

Typical day

On a daily basis, Flight Attendants greet passengers boarding aircraft and direct them to assigned seats. They check to ensure that food, beverages, blankets, reading material, emergency equipment, and other supplies are aboard and are inadequate supply.

A typical day for a Flight Attendant will also include:

  • Announce and demonstrate safety and emergency procedures, such as the use of oxygen masks, seat belts, and life jackets.
  • Prepare passengers and aircraft for landing, following procedures.
  • Conduct periodic trips through the cabin to ensure passenger comfort and to distribute reading material, headphones, pillows, playing cards, and blankets.
  • Attend preflight briefings concerning weather, altitudes, routes, emergency procedures, crew coordination, lengths of flights, food and beverage services offered, and numbers of passengers.
  • Verify that first aid kits and other emergency equipment, including fire extinguishers and oxygen bottles, are in working order.

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Flight Attendants also reassure passengers when situations, such as turbulence, are encountered. They may also heat and serve prepared foods.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Flight Attendants inspect passenger tickets to verify the information and to obtain destination information. They might also assist passengers entering or disembarking the aircraft.

In addition, they operate audio and video systems.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them announce flight delays and descent preparations.

To some Flight Attendants, it is also their responsibility to answer passengers’ questions about flights, aircraft, weather, travel routes and services, arrival times, or schedules.

What is the job like

Job satisfaction

High

Is this job meaningful

Low

72% said they were satisfied with their job and 41% said they found their job meaningful.


A major U.S. airline

I spent about five years working as a flight attendant and loved it (for the most part). Most of the training is safety-related (evacuations, medical situations, etc.), but the job itself is pretty easy. You’ve board the plane, do the safety demo, hand out snacks/drinks, collect trash, and relax the rest of the day. This … Read More


A major US airline

My name is Nicole Janowski and I work for a major US airline. As a reserve flight attendant, I get 3 hours’ notice when assigned to work on a flight. When I’m on call, crew scheduling can call at any time day or night. I’ll answer their call, confirm my trip details, and start to … Read More


Pros

Suitable for people who like to start and carry out projects.

Suitable for people who value relationships between co-workers and customers and want to work in a friendly non-competitive environment.

This career is perfect for people who love to work indoors.

It is not too difficult to get into this career. Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for this career.

Cons

Not suitable for people who like to solve problems mentally.

Salary is below average.

Demand for this career is declining.

How much do they make

Average salary

$59150 per year

Average hourly wage

$* per hour

Entry-level Flight Attendants with little to no experience can expect to make anywhere between $30,930 to $43,080 per year or $* to $* per hour.

Salary by experience Annual Hourly
Highest (Top 10%) $84,790 $*
Senior (Top 25%) $71,550 $*
Median $59,050 $*
Junior (Bottom 25%) $43,080 $*
No experience (Bottom 10%) $30,930 $*

This table shows the top 10 highest paying industries for Flight Attendants based on their average annual salary.

Salary by industry Annual Hourly
Nonscheduled Air Transportation $59690 $*
Scheduled Air Transportation $59230 $*
Support Activities for Air Transportation $53480 $*
Employment Services $51560 $*
Management of Companies and Enterprises $ $*

View more salary by industries here.

Where can they work

Where can Flight Attendants work? Here is a table showing the top 10 largest employers of Flight Attendants including the average salary in that industry.

Employers Total Employed Annual Salary Hourly Wages
Scheduled Air Transportation 112450 $59230 $*
Nonscheduled Air Transportation 1940 $59690 $*
Support Activities for Air Transportation 1180 $53480 $*
Management of Companies and Enterprises 40 $ $*
Employment Services $51560 $*

What is the work day like

Working hours

Less than 40 hours
78%

40 hours
7%

More than 40 hours
15%

Working schedule

26%

74%

0%

Email

How often do you use email in this job?

Once a week
39%

Every day
45%

Telephone

How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?

Once a week
49%

Every day
1%

Group discussions

How often do you have group discussions in this job?

Once a week
20%

Every day
64%

Public speaking

How often does this job require you to do public speaking?

Never
28%

Once a year
0%

Once a month
3%

Once a week
20%

Every day
48%

Level of competition

How much competitive pressure is in this job?

Not competitive at all
53%

Slightly competitive
8%

Moderately competitive
13%

Highly competitive
18%

Extremely competitive
8%

What is the work environment like

Office-style environment

Indoors in an environmentally controlled condition

Never
13%

Once a year or more
0%

Once a month or more
0%

Once a week or more
23%

Every day
64%

Warehouse-style environment

Indoors in a non-controlled environmental condition such as a warehouse

Never
74%

Once a year or more
2%

Once a month or more
19%

Once a week or more
0%

Every day
5%

Outdoors

Outdoors exposed to all weather conditions

Never
85%

Once a year or more
11%

Once a month or more
4%

Once a week or more
0%

Every day
0%

Outdoors – Under Cover

Outdoors but under cover (e.g. structure with roof but no walls)

Never
99%

Once a year or more
1%

Once a month or more
0%

Once a week or more
0%

Every day
0%

How to become one

Difficulty to become one

Medium
You will need previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience. Most careers in this difficulty category require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an Associate’s degree, and one or two years of on-the-job training. Similar careers include Travel Agents, Agricultural Technicians, Court Reports, and Medical Assistants.

Required level of education

What level of education do you need to perform the job?

Less than a High School Diploma
0%

High School Diploma or equivalent
30%

Post-Secondary Certificate
11%

Some College Courses
33%

Associate’s Degree or similar
26%

Bachelor’s Degree
0%

Post-Baccalaureate Certificate
0%

Master’s Degree
0%

Post-Master’s Certificate
0%

First Professional Degree
0%

Doctoral Degree
0%

Post-Doctoral Training
0%

Relevant majors

Airline Flight Attendant

A program that prepares individuals to apply technical knowledge and skills to the performance of a variety of personal services conducive to the safety and comfort of airline passengers during flight, including verifying tickets, explaining the use of safety equipment, providing passenger services, and responding to in-flight emergencies.

Relevant work experience

How much related work experience do you need to get hired for the job?

None
10%

1 month
0%

1 to 3 months
2%

3 to 6 months
9%

6 months to 1 year
12%

1 to 2 years
24%

2 to 4 years
36%

4 to 6 years
6%

6 to 8 years
0%

8 to 10 years
0%

Over 10 years
0%

On The Job Training

How much on the job training do you need to perform the job?

None or short demonstration
10%

1 month
43%

1 to 3 months
29%

3 to 6 months
19%

6 months to 1 year
0%

1 to 2 years
0%

2 to 4 years
0%

4 to 10 years
0%

Over 10 years
0%

Should you become one

Best personality type for this career

The Leader

People with this personality likes to start and work on projects. They also like leading people and making many decisions.

The Builder
48%

People with The Builder personality type likes practical and hands-on work. They prefer working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery.


The Thinker
19%

People with The Thinker personality likes to work with ideas that require an extensive amount of thinking. They prefer work that requires them to solve problems mentally.


The Artist
33%

People with The Artist personality likes to work with designs and patterns. They prefer activities that require self-expression and prefer work that can be done without following a clear set of rules.


The Helper
76%

People with The Helper personality type likes to work with people and in teams. They prefer work that allows them to build relationships with others.


The Leader
86%

People with The Leader personality likes to start and work on projects. They also like leading people and making many decisions.


The Organizer
67%

People with The Organizer personality type likes to follow set procedures and routines. They prefer working with data and details more than with ideas.


You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tend to like starting up and carrying out projects. They like leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk-taking and often deal with business.

They also like working with, communicating with, and teaching people. They like helping or providing service to others.

Take this quiz to see if this is the right career for you.

Work Values

Which values are the most important to a person’s satisfaction for this job?

Achievement
52%

You are someone who is results oriented. You prefer work that allows you to utilize your skills and abilities while at the same time giving you a sense of accomplishment.

Working Conditions
69%

You are someone who values job security, steady employment, and good working conditions. You also prefer work that keeps you busy all the time with something different to do every day.

Recognition
43%

You are someone who values job advancement and leadership roles. You prefer work that receives recognition for the work you do and jobs that are looked up to by others in the company and your community.

Relationships
90%

You are someone who likes to provide a service to others. You prefer a work environment where you can work with your co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Support
86%

You are someone who values a company that stands behind their employees. You prefer a work environment where everyone is treated fairly and is being supported by the company.

Independence
67%

You are someone who likes to work on your own and make your own decisions. You prefer work that requires little supervision and are allowed to try out your own ideas.

FAQ


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