Most cabin crew applicants are preoccupied with the screening process. However, one thing that is frequently overlooked and far more difficult is preparing for the airline’s cabin crew training! Wait until you see what training is like if you think getting in is difficult!
The most difficult part of your journey to earning your wings is cabin crew training. The difficulty of cabin crew training surprises many people. This article will prepare you for your responsibilities as a new cabin crew trainee. Airlines’ training programs may differ, but one thing is certain: the majority of airlines have a passing grade of more than 90%! Why? When it comes to flying, even minor mistakes can have far-reaching consequences, especially when safety is at stake.
Before we get into what you need to prepare for, let’s go over some common misconceptions about cabin crew training.
- It’s enjoyable and simple – Enjoyable, yes, but simple? No way!
- It’s just about serving coffee and tea – completely incorrect! In fact, this is where many people fail right away.
- The safety demonstration is so simple – it’s only 1% of what you’ll be doing.
Now, let’s go over what you’ll be doing during training.
What happens during the airline flight attendant training?
- You will have a lot of reading and memorizing to do! You will be reading and memorizing a massive amount of terms, facts, instructions, and directions, among other things! The Cabin Crew Operations Manual, or CCOM, has 500 to 1000 pages. Details about each aircraft in the fleet, detailed safety procedures, dealing with various situations, airline policies and procedures, and much more are covered.
- In relation to the first statement, you will accomplish all of this in only 2-3 months! Yes, your study habits will be put to the test even more.
- Regarding the first two statements, you will have exams every day! Yes, every day, usually first thing in the morning.
- In relation to the third statement, each exam’s passing mark ranges from 90% to 100%! Yes, there are some exams where a single mistake can cause you to fail.
- You are only allowed to fail an exam three times!
- You will also learn a variety of procedures, skills, and drills. Swimming and staying afloat in deep water without a life vest, performing CPR, improving English proficiency skills, communication skills, and for some airlines, make-up and grooming, first aid, and basic self-defense skills are just a few examples.
- You will also practice evacuation drills such as jumping out of an aircraft through the emergency slides, climbing into a life raft, fighting a fire, opening the exit doors, ensuring that all passengers are out, giving passengers instructions, and much more.
- Expect to learn customer service skills as well as personal development. You will be dealing with various personalities and situations. Your emotional intelligence will undoubtedly be honed here.
- You will go through checkrides where you will actually fly with a set of regular cabin crew before graduating and will be evaluated on how much you have learned and if you can be released to the line. You will also be undergoing supervised line experience (SLE). The procedure varies by airline, but for the most part, you will be treated as if you were a supervised working crew on a real flight.
- You will learn how to serve passengers in a detailed and well-coordinated manner for full-service carriers. Business and first-class passengers will be prioritized. Yes, you will learn basic bartending, wine tasting, and much more.
The aforementioned are simply general expectations for your training, but everything varies by airline. So now we’ll talk about how to prepare for your training with some pointers and advice.
Tips and advice to prepare for your flight attendant training
- Set your priorities in order. Because of the amount of studying you will have to do, you will have to put your nightlife, leisure time, lovelife time (if meron), and yes, family time on hold. Remember, it’s only for two to three months in exchange for your childhood dream of being a cabin crew and earning your wings. Consider this: as a cabin crew member, you will be able to bring your family abroad for free.
- Read ahead of time. Understand everything rather than simply memorize it. Because one thing is usually related to another, you must understand and memorize every detail. If you simply memorized something but did not comprehend it, you may become disoriented along the way.
- To reduce stress, learn proper breathing techniques. Cabin crew training is stressful because of the materials you must study as well as your tight schedule. Breathing exercises can assist you in relaxing and de-stressing.
- In between, take power naps. Because you will be experiencing sleep deprivation, try to take power naps whenever possible. Memory and learning are said to benefit from power naps. It also reduces stress and strengthens the immune system.
- Simply concentrate on your goal. Do not be swayed by peer pressure or discouragement. Remember, this has been your goal, so keep it in mind.
- Make time to exercise so that you don’t feel sluggish in class.
- Create a support system. Your family and true friends who are there for you on this journey. There will be times when you want to give up, but your family and friends will always cheer for you and remind you of your ultimate goal.
- Create a family with your batchmates. Assure one another that none of you will be removed. Help one another and stick together. Encourage one another when things get touchy and difficult. Act like a platoon of soldiers. Nobody is left behind. Because of the bond and foundation you built as one large support group and family, your batchmates will eventually become your second family.
- If you don’t know how to swim, you should learn. Yes, as part of your training, you will dive into a deep swimming pool without a life vest, so you must learn to float.
- Study, study, study! Reading, reading, reading! They claim that if college students studied the same way that cabin crew members studied during training, they would all be valedictorians.
Always keep your eyes on the prize. The best things in life are not given away; they must be earned! Good luck with your future cabin crew training! Promise, the journey will be worth every drop of blood, sweat, and tears.
First love never dies. I fell in love with airplanes and aviation when I was a kid. My dream was to become a pilot, but destiny led me to another path: to be an aviation digital media content creator and a small business owner. My passion for aviation inspires me to bring you quality content through my website and social accounts. Aviation is indeed in my blood and blog!
