Cabin Crew / Air Hostess

Cabin crew is one of the prime roles in the aviation industry. A cabin crew, which comprises of air hostess (female) and/or flight steward (male), are responsible for the comfort, welfare and safety of the passengers on board. Apart from checking the comfort facilities for the travelers they also have the responsibility to check all the emergency arrangements before taking off and landing of the flight. 

According to the regulation, no member of the aircrew will fly more than 72 hours in a month. This ensures work-life balance along with attractive salaries. In India, an air hostess can earn between Rs 16,000 and Rs 45,000 in domestic airlines. In international flights, the number tends to go higher. After a few years of servicing as cabin crew, they can get promoted to head attendant and enjoy a higher salary package. 

The Indian aviation industry is the third-largest in the world as reported by the International Air Transport Association (IATA). This sector has witnessed tremendous growth over the last few decades with the rising economic infrastructure of the country. According to the economic report by Goldman Sachs, the country has about six million aircraft and 400 million passenger departures. Choosing the career as an air hostess is beneficial for young candidates for the nature of the job, the salary it pays and its future it holds for them.

Educational requirements for pursuing Air Hostess Training

To become an air hostess, the aspirant should have completed 10+2 education in any stream or an undergraduate degree in aviation. The age limit for applying for the course is between 17 years and 26 years. The candidate should be a minimum of five foot and two inches tall in height. The candidate should be unmarried at the time of applying for the course. They should have normal eyesight or corrected to 6/6 in both the eyes. The candidate should be medically fit and have a pleasing personality.

To apply for the training, the candidate can directly go to the training institutes or the airlines after seeing an opening. After selection, the airlines will conduct an initial screening process, in which the height and weight of the candidate are accessed. The candidate has to clear the entrance test conducted by the airlines. After passing the test, the main interview will be conducted to access the voice, language fluency, communication skill and personality of the candidate. The selected candidates will be offered air hostess training by the airline for a period of six months.

Required skillset for becoming an Air Hostess

Air Hostess is a course that demands a lot of soft skills and personality training. The air hostess is required to be confident, and have a pleasant and friendly personality. Other skills that are required are:

• They should have a clear speech and voice
• Should be a team player and be patient at all situations
• They should have good personality and appearance and be swift in taking decisions
• They should have good communication skills in the local language and any foreign language
• It is important for them to have a good sense of responsibility.
• They should have a good presence of mind and take initiative in all situations
• They should carry a positive attitude at all times and be ready to work with flexible timings
• They should have inherent team-working skills

Cost of undertaking Air Hostess Course in India

Air hostess training can be taken up at three levels, as certificate courses, as diploma courses, and as degree courses. The course fee is between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1,50,000 depending on the course and the institute. But for becoming an air hostess, one has to work towards getting selected by an airline, they give free training with stipend making the course even more economical to learn.

Top Institutes for taking Air Hostess Training

There are few colleges that offer air hostess training in India and will render training on-ground services, air hostess training, handling aviation cargo, hospitality and customer services. The top training institutes are,

College Rank	Name of the college	Programme Fee (in Rs lakh)
1	Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training, Delhi	1.50
2	Wings Air Hostess and Hospitality Training, Gujarat	1.35
3	Universal aviation academy, Chennai	1
4	Jet Airways training academy, Mumbai	1.45
5	The Bombay Flying Club's College of Aviation, Mumbai	1.50

Career Prospects and Salaries

To become a successful air hostess, one has to have a pleasing personality and appropriate education. The field has a tremendous scope and is expected to grow at a steady pace with each passing year. With the liberalization of the FDI policy, tremendous investments are expected in this sector in the near future. The airline industry flourishes with the emergence of new airlines and massive investment.

A career as air hostess also pays with excellent salaries and an attractive work environment. They are paid upto Rs 2 lakh a month if working with international airlines. The salary is between Rs. 30,00 to Rs. 45,000 with domestic airlines. Apart from regular monthly salaries, they are also entitled to other perks such as discounts with flight tickets, retirement benefits, and medical insurance. Some of the top recruiters for air hostess are, Indian Airlines, Go Air, Air India, Delta Airlines, Jet Airways, Gulf Air, British Airways, Singapore Airlines, United Air, Lufthansa, etc.

Q. What qualifications do you need for cabin crew/ airhostess?

A. To be hired as a cabin crew/ airhostess, one needs to be minimum 17 years of age. Along with fulfilling the age limit criteria, aspirants need to be well-versed in English to be hired as cabin crew. Apart from this, fluency in any other language will be an added advantage. Candidates are hired as cabin crew once they complete 10+2 level of education.

Q. What does cabin crew/ airhostess do?

A. Cabin crew or air steward/ air hostess are responsible for ensuring the safety and comfort of passengers flying with an airline. Everyday duties of cabin crew include greeting passengers, showing them to their seats, informing of air safety procedures, helping passengers who have special needs and greeting passengers as they de-plane.

Q. What is the difference between cabin crew and air hostess?

A. There is no difference between both the job profiles. They are simply two different words used to define the same job profile. An airhostess or cabin crew is tasked with looking after passengers on an aircraft.

Q. Is graduation necessary for cabin crew?

A. The minimum educational requirement to be hired as cabin crew is completing 10+2 level education in any stream. Candidates who have completed their graduation will not be given any special advantage. To become a cabin crew/ airhostess one does not need to be from a specific stream or have pursued a specific course. On the contrary, aspirants need to fulfill other eligibility criteria such as weight, height, good communication skills, good vision, etc. to be hired as cabin crew.

Q. Is cabin crew a respectable job?

Q. Is pilot part of cabin crew?

A. Pilots are responsible for flying the aircraft. Some members who are part of cabin crew are – flight attendants, airhostess, pursers, onboard chefs and the likes. Cabin crew members are responsible for ensuring the well-being of passengers onboard a flight.

Q. Do airlines hire married cabin crew?

A. Most airlines do not have any written rule regarding marital status. However, some airlines have clauses wherein only unmarried candidates with ‘no children’ are eligible to apply for a cabin crew post.

Q. Do air hostess get holidays?

A. Flight stewards and air hostesses do not have a static work schedule or shift. Candidates in such a job profile work weekend as well as holidays (depending on the schedule/ roster issued for them). Once they become a confirmed employee, they are allowed holidays and off days as per industry standards.

Q. Is swimming necessary for cabin crew?

A. When being recruited, no swimming test is done. However, aspirants are required to learn swimming before they board their first flight. Also, at the time of cabin crew license training, one needs to prove that they are not afraid of water and if the need so arises then they can swim as well.

Q. Do air hostesses get paid well?

A. Although it is considered a glamorous field, candidates in air hostess job profile are not paid too well in the first few years of joining the profession. However, as flying hours of candidates increase their salaries also increase. The average salary earned by air hostesses/ flight stewards in India is Rs 4,86,082.

Q. How many hours can cabin crew work?

A. The maximum duty hours that can be undertaken by cabin crew is fixed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The maximum duty period is 22 hours in long haul flights. As per DGCA, cabin crew shall not undertake any “duty between 12 AM and 5 AM local time for two consecutive nights except once within a period of 168 hours/7 consecutive days.

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