Top Problems New Cabin Crew Face

You’ve got your wings!

It’s the moment you’ve been dreaming of, and the beginning of your new Cabin Crew Career.

But as with any new position, there will be a ‘settling in’ period, where you may encounter a few issues you might not have previously thought about!

We’ve outlined a few of the things you should keep in mind during those first few months as crew.

Initial salary during training

It is important to remember that during your initial 4 to 6-week period of cabin crew training, your salary will reflect the duties you are carrying out, so you will not be earning the same as you will be when you are in the sky.

Some new crew find the initial month difficult as your payment can be more than £500 lower than your normal salary payment when you are earning flight pay, commission and overnight allowances.

The best advice is to ensure you have some savings for the first month or so, just to keep you afloat and to help you not have money worries during this extremely busy and what can be stressful period.

Remembering key information for SEP Tests

The SEP tests (Safety and Emergency Procedures) tests are a challenge, especially when you need to be able to remember several procedures off by heart, without being able to refer to your manual. During your training you are likely to complete several tests, both theory and practical based, and the amount of information you need to remember can be intense.

New cabin crew often deal with this by working together in hotels/accommodation at night time, revising together, testing each other and sharing the experience.

There are times when some crew do fail tests, but please do worry, you will always be given a second opportunity; after all, the airline wants you to succeed and fly so you are able to help them deliver outstanding on-board service!

Handling rude and aggressive passengers

As new crew, your first encounter with a rude or aggressive passenger is a little daunting and does catch you off guard! Your heart will skip a beat, and probably initially feel you can’t deal with the situation!

This is all completely normal, but remember, you have most likely had some world class training in how to diffuse stressful and intense situations effectively, and this training will kick in.

Trust us – after the first time you manage this kind of situation, there will be no stopping you!

Dealing with constant change of roster/schedule

As a new crew member, you will often be faced with regular changes to your roster/schedule. These changes could mean one day you are scheduled to fly to Edinburgh and back, twice, and then the aircraft has some technical difficulties in Edinburgh, so you need to make an unscheduled night-stop in Edinburgh.

This unscheduled stop will most likely change your schedule for the upcoming week, and as such your days and times of work, as well as destinations will also change.

This constant change can be daunting at first, but you must remember you need to plan for every eventuality every time you board an aircraft.  It will become easier with time!