Job Of A Cabin Crew

Introduction
An Airhostess or  Cabin Crew is known by different names, depending where you are. In USA and Northern America, it better known as Flight Attendant. In Europe the term Cabin Crew is often used. In Asia, they are often called air hostess. In Malaysia and Indonesia, the term Pramugari is often used. All these terms mean the same, referring the staff that "man" and managed passengers in the aircraft cabin.

Job of the Cabin Crew
Let us ask the basic question, What is the job of a Cabin Crew. I bet, you will get different answers depending on whom you ask:-
a. What is the roles and responsibilities.
   - The major reason why the job exist is to take care of the safety of the passengers especially during emergencies and abnormal situations.
   - Provide the in-flight services - This include the foods and drinks, entertainment system, gifts and others.
   - Selling of in-flight products such as gifts, cigarette and others.
   - Cabin Crew as the Face of the Airline - The crew become the symbol of the airline, for example... Singapore Girls... the crew represents the airline in trying to reach the mind of the customers.

b. Jobs Activities

The jobs activities can be divided into 5 areas...... 1. Getting ready to the airport...  2. Before flight   3. In flight .... 4. After flight.......  5. Back at the base.

 1. Getting ready to the airport: I take this as a job activity although some of the crew do not consider so. We are not going to an office, where you can dress as you like. The make up has to follow the company's standard, so is you dress, your hair style and the perfume you use.

 2. So you go into the briefing room, before a flight you are briefed on the flight and schedule and special needs by the passengers. Then you will go the aircraft, make sure the things that you need are there. The equipments are there and in good order

Then the passengers will start to enter the aircraft. You wish them and usher them to their seats.ensure luggage is safely stowed away. Time to close the door, make sure no ground staff inside. As the aircraft taxi, the time for demonstration of  emergency equipment and procedures. The video system can make your job easier.

3. During a flight you will attend to the passengers needs. Make the necessary announcements, serve food and drinks and sell duty free goods. Give the passengers the headset as required. Lookout for suspicious characters and make the passenger comfortable. 

If there is emergency or abnormal situation, the crews role is to ensure the safety of the passengers.

4. At the end of the flight, cabin crew ensure passengers disembark safely. Then you need to fill up the necessary aircraft log, and other paperworks regarding in flight sales and duty free goods.

5. On return to base you need to settle the account of the in fight sales.

c. Work Environment.
The works as cabin crew can be demanding and strenuous, considering the expectation from the passengers, the timing and odd hours and the confined spaces in which they have to work in.

1. Place of Work- Normally a cabin crew works in an aircraft. The bigger percentage of the time is in the air. Depending of the rank, a airhostess may have office work, likely to be in the training and quality assurance. Senior air hostess may have to conduct classes for the juniors. There are also a group that do quality control, they fly to audit the performance of the cabin crews. They do reports and presentation.

2. He/she will be subjected to changing ambient pressure and temperature. There was concern of the effect of unfiltered cosmic ray on the crews, although there is no tested data available to support the fear.

3. Being a frequent air travelers, a cabin crew will suffer jet lag as he normally flying across  multiple time zones. The internal body clock can trigger psychotic and mood disorders.

The Effects of the Crew Performance on the Airline
Depending on the strategy of the airline, the cabin crew performance can be one of the important factors that determine the success of the airline.For Low Cost airlines, I think, the good services of the crews, will be less importance compared to a full-service carrier who is competing on service quality.

I would group the performance into two types:
a. Positive performance - when the crews do a good job, it is the degree of how good the job will vary.
b. The Negative Performance -

The reason why, the above grouping is necessary is because the effects of good and negative performance on the airlines is different.
A positive performance  of crews for low cost carriers may not have significant effects. This is because the passengers do not expect outstanding performance and the carrier selection was made based on other factors such as pricing. However poor performance will definitely a factor that draw away the passengers.
  
Job Specification
Refer to UK Ascentis for the skills set: Ascentis 
The example below give some idea about the requirements for the job of airhostess.
JOB SPECIFICATION
Job title:                     Cabin Crew
Occupational area:     Cabin
Employment type      :Full time
Location                   Your Home Base
Starting date             1 May 2010

Cabin Crew Member
Cabin Crew Member a fascinating, versatile and responsible profession. During your work on board you will be challenged by using your flexibility and creativity when delivering the high service standard, fullfilling passenger needs, encountering difficult situations at times and dealing with short flight times. Each flight promises an array of experiences: Caring for our international clientele, working in changing teams, layovers in pulsating metropolis and exotic places.

Duties
Assuring and applying the safety and security regulations on board
Caring for international guests on board
Independent flight preparation
Preparing the aeroplane cabin
Organising the workflow in the aeroplane galleys
Conducting the meal and beverage service
Carrying out the sales on board

Requirements
nationality of a specified country,
Minimum age:            20 years
Maximum age          : for some countries
Minimum height       : 158 cm
Normal weight        :
Excellent health and ability to work under pressure
Completed training and or similar school diploma
High standard of language skills in German and English; French, Italian, Spanish is an advantage (languages studied in a foreign country is appreciated)
Charming, friendly, team-orientated personality with willingness to serve
Quality awareness in terms of traditional Malaysian hospitality
Well-groomed appearance and impeccable manners
Flexibility (e.g. irregular working schedule)
Completed military service, if applicable
Good swimming skills

Department:   Cabin Crew
Starting date    1 May 2010
Contact
InformationRecruitment Cabin Crew
Tel: 1111 2222 333
email: email@sample.com

Application
Please send your CV together with the application form to: Airlines Ltd.
Human Resources Cabin Crew Recruitment
P.O. Box 123 345