What Does a Flight Attendant Do?

The main priorities of flight attendants include improving the comfort and safety of all passengers on a flight.

Before the Flight has Started

They begin a flight by first directing passengers to their seats, and giving any assistance if needed. Explaining the flight details to the passengers, in addition to giving safety education to passengers. When educating, they demonstrate how to accurately use the safety equipment, and indicate where the safety equipment may be. They observe that proper safety measures are followed, such as seatbelt safety, and ensuring technological restrictions are being met.

After the Flight has Started

When the flight has started, they may communicate with the passengers, in addition to when the plane will be landing. They are also responsible for maintenance of refreshments that are on the plane prior to the flight, in addition to general maintenance of the seating area in the plane. They serve refreshments, snacks, alcoholic beverages, and meals to the passengers while the plane is in flight.

Emergency Situations

They can observe and attend to minors on the plane, as well as those with special needs. In an emergent situation, they may need to direct passengers of what to do, and may even need to provide first aid to passengers.

They must be experts of hospitality, and their primary concern should be the happiness, comfort, and above all, safety of all passengers. It is required that all flight attendants are knowledgeable of what to do in an emergent situation, and would be able to get passengers to safety in the event of an emergency.

All flights are at risk for many elements, such as inclement weather, fires, and mechanical issues, and it is the duty of the flight attendant to be knowledgeable and demonstrate the ability to keep passengers safe, and give them the education to use the necessary tools in an emergent situation.

Due to this being a customer-service oriented position, passengers will speak with them about concerns, and may even become enraged while speaking with them. This could be due to the environment of being on a plane, which can increase anxiety and stress. Flight attendant careers are high-stress.

Work Environment

Flight attendants are expected to work long shifts due to the amount of flights being flown on any given day, and may range between twelve and fourteen hours. They can expect to spend a few nights away from home as a result of the scheduling patterns. Flexibility is a necessity for them, especially for new ones. Approximately 25% work part time, and most are expected to fly for up to ninety hours per month.

Prospective flight attendants should anticipate limited position options due to a decrease in job growth in this field. The majority of new positions will be filling the positions of those that have retired or have been terminated, with few new opportunities. The air travel industry is looking for customer-service oriented personalities to represent their travel services.