The Cabin Crew Forum
Where Do You Want to Start?
Know what you need? Jump straight to a stage. New to all of this? Let us walk you through it.
How does the airline want you to apply?
Not sure which applies to you? Most airlines recruit online, so start there. The explanation further down this page covers both routes.
Not sure where you stand? Try a two minute quiz
From the outside, the cabin crew recruitment process can seem incredibly strange. There are multiple hoops to jump through, and assessments that don’t seem to have any relevance to the actual job. It can feel as though luck plays a bigger part in selection than anything else and, with feedback in short supply, it is very difficult to work out what went wrong when you are rejected.
The thing to understand is that the entire process is designed to whittle down a huge number of applications, often with very little human involvement until the very end. It feels impersonal, and that is by design.
That can be jarring. You may know that, given ten minutes in front of a recruiter, you would prove you have the skills, qualities and experience to do the job. Yet you might never get that chance, because an algorithm scoring an online assessment that seemingly had nothing to do with the job has decided you shouldn’t be shortlisted.
That’s why this website exists.
Matt came to flying from a different career and was cut in the first round of his first Emirates Open Day. He kept going back until he got the Golden Call, then kept applying to other airlines to check that what he had learned worked beyond his own experience. Everything on this site comes from that.
How the Cabin Crew Recruitment Process Works
Strip away the jargon and the process is fairly simple. It runs along one of two lines, depending on the airline and sometimes on the country you are applying from.
Route 1: You apply online
- Submit an online application
- Complete an online assessment
- Record a one-way video interview
- Attend an Assessment Day
- Take part in a final face-to-face interview
Route 2: You attend an Open Day
- Attend an Open Day
- Take part in the Assessment Day
- Complete a final face-to-face interview
Most airlines use the first route. A smaller number, most famously the big Gulf carriers, still hold walk-in Open Days in some countries, where you turn up with your CV and are shortlisted on the spot. Not every airline uses every step, and the order can shift, but almost every cabin crew recruitment process is a version of one of these two.
What the airlines won’t tell you is what they are looking for from you at each of these points, or how best to prepare yourself to get through them.
We’ve been taking part in cabin crew recruitment events for years with a single aim: to work out what works, and to share it with you in bite-sized chunks that you can learn and revise a few minutes at a time. This guide breaks down what each stage of the recruitment process involves, why it exists and how to pass it.
Insight: Most cabin crew recruitment guides focus only on how to pass. Very few admit that the process is also subjective, sometimes arbitrary, and can come down to which recruiter is in the room on a given day. That is not a reason to skip the preparation, which is still what gives you the best chance. But if you do everything right and it doesn’t work out, that is a reflection of how the process works and not of whether you are suited to the career.
New to This? Start Here
If you already know the job and the terminology, skip ahead to the four stages. If you are right at the beginning, the next few minutes will make everything else on this site easier to follow.
What cabin crew are there to do
Cabin crew are on board for safety. Airlines are required by law to carry a minimum number of trained crew on every flight, and the reason is evacuations, fires, medical emergencies and security threats, not the drinks service. The service is the part passengers see, and it matters a great deal to the airline, but it comes second.
This shapes the recruitment process more than most candidates realise. Recruiters are looking for people who stay calm, follow procedures, work well with strangers and can be firm with a passenger while remaining polite. Almost every exercise you will face is testing one of those things, even when it doesn’t look like it.
You will also see two job titles used across this site. Flight attendant is the term used in North America, and cabin crew is used in the UK, the Middle East and much of Europe. They are the same job.
What airlines typically ask for
The exact requirements differ from airline to airline, but most ask for some version of the following:
- The right to work in the country where the airline is based. The Gulf carriers are the main exception, as they recruit internationally and arrange your visa.
- A minimum age, typically somewhere between 18 and 21.
- A minimum height or reach, so that you can get to the safety equipment stored in the overhead lockers.
- Customer service experience. Many airlines want a year or so in a customer-facing job such as retail, hospitality or healthcare. Very few ask for previous flying experience.
- Fluent English, and sometimes a second language.
- A valid passport and the ability to travel freely to the countries the airline flies to.
- Appearance standards, including rules on visible tattoos that vary enormously between airlines.
Our airline guides list the specific requirements for each carrier. You’ll find them in the Choosing an Airline section below.
The jargon, explained
Cabin crew recruitment has a language of its own. These are the terms and abbreviations you will run into most often on this site and in candidate groups online.
Cabin Crew Recruitment Jargon Buster
Type an abbreviation or a word to find out what it means.
No match for that one. Try a shorter word or the abbreviation.
Is Cabin Crew Life Right for You?
Before you put weeks of effort into an application, spend two minutes on the job itself. The travel is real, and so are the 3am alarms, the missed birthdays and the difficult passengers. None of this is meant to put you off. Candidates who understand what they are signing up for interview better, and they are far more likely to still be enjoying the job two years in.
Before you apply
Is Cabin Crew Life Right for You?
The Four Stages of Cabin Crew Recruitment
We’ve organised everything on this site into four stages, each with its own hub page. Whichever of the two routes you are on, the steps fall into these four stages. If you are new, work through them in order. If you already know which stage you are preparing for, go straight there.
Stage 1: Your CV and Application
What it involves: Filling in an online application form and uploading a CV or resume. If you are going to an Open Day instead, this is the printed CV you hand to a recruiter.
Why it exists: It is the first cut. Popular airlines receive far more applications than a recruitment team could ever read, so software usually does the first sift, checking that you meet the minimum requirements and that your experience matches what the airline has asked for.
How to pass: Keep the layout plain so that the software can read it, describe what you achieved in each job and not just what your duties were, and reflect the language of the job advert without stuffing it with keywords. Most candidates spend far too little time on this stage, which is why so many never hear back.
Stage 2: Online Assessments
What it involves: One or more tests completed at home, usually within a few days of applying. Expect some combination of a personality questionnaire, a situational judgment test, a one-way video interview and, at some airlines, English or aptitude tests.
Why it exists: It lets an airline assess thousands of people without anybody on its recruitment team being involved. The tests are built to measure the traits the airline believes predict a good crew member, which is why they can seem to have little to do with flying.
How to pass: Know which format you are about to face before you click start, and practise it. Answer personality questions consistently, and treat a one-way video interview exactly as you would a real one: dressed for it, in a quiet room, with answers you have rehearsed out loud. This stage catches more people off guard than any other, simply because they didn’t know it was coming.
Stage 3: The Assessment Day
What it involves: A day, or part of one, spent with recruiters and other candidates. It typically includes a presentation from the airline, a group exercise, a role play or individual task, and checks such as the reach test. This stage also covers Open Days, which often lead straight into an Assessment Day for the candidates who are shortlisted.
Why it exists: It is the first time the airline sees how you behave around other people. Working well with a group of strangers under a bit of pressure is the job, so recruiters recreate it in a conference room and watch what happens.
How to pass: Remember that you are being assessed from the moment you arrive until the moment you leave, including the breaks. In group exercises, recruiters are looking for teamwork and not for a leader, so listen, build on other people’s ideas and bring quieter candidates into the conversation. The format is predictable and the mistakes candidates make are almost always the same ones, which is why preparation pays off here more visibly than anywhere else.
Stage 4: The Interview
What it involves: A face-to-face conversation with one or two recruiters, either in person or on a live video call. Most of the questions will ask for real examples from your past: a time you dealt with a difficult customer, worked in a team, or handled a mistake.
Why it exists: By this point, the airline already likes you. The interview is there to confirm that impression, check that your experience stands up to questioning, and make sure you understand what the job involves.
How to pass: Prepare a handful of true stories from your working life and practise telling them in a clear structure. Know why you want this job at this airline, beyond the travel. Recruiters hear rehearsed answers all day, and the candidates who stand out are the ones who sound like themselves.
Choosing an Airline
The four stages apply across the industry, but the job at the end of them varies enormously. Pay, contract type, where you live, how much of the world you see and how much say you have over your roster all depend on the airline and the region it is based in. A Gulf carrier, a big US airline and a European short-haul airline offer three very different lives.
If you don’t yet know where to apply, answer eight questions, and we’ll suggest airlines to look at, along with any your answers rule out.
Choosing an airline
Which Airlines Suit You?
Already have an airline in mind? Our airline hub pages bring together the salary, requirements, appearance standards, and step-by-step application guides for each carrier.
Browse by Airline
Airline-specific cheat sheets, open day accounts, and assessment day guides.
More hub pages are coming soon. We have lots more articles for different airlines, so feel free to browse the website to find your airline. You can also compare what each airline pays in our salary and benefits guides.
You’ve Got the Job: What Now?
A job offer is normally conditional on background checks, references and a medical, and then on passing initial training. Training typically lasts several weeks and is far more demanding than most new joiners expect. The bulk of it covers safety procedures, security and first aid, with exams you have to pass in order to stay on the course.
Before you accept an offer, make sure you understand the pay, the contract and the lifestyle that comes with it. Each of our airline hub pages has a section on exactly this.
What Nobody Tells You Before You Start
The process can be ruthless and subjective. Strong candidates are rejected for reasons that have nothing to do with their suitability for the role. That is a result of how a high-volume selection process works, and not a judgment on you.
Preparation is still the biggest factor within your control. You can’t control who is in the room or what kind of day the recruiter is having. You can control whether you know the process, whether you’ve practised your answers, and whether you show up ready.
Several attempts is normal. The founder of this site attended more than six Emirates Assessment Days before getting the job. Persistence, self-reflection and continued preparation are what separate the candidates who eventually get through from the ones who give up after the first or second attempt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most airlines follow a similar four-stage structure: a CV and online application, one or more online assessments (such as a personality test, a situational judgment test or a one-way video interview), an in-person Assessment Day or Open Day, and a final interview. The exact format varies by airline, but the core stages are consistent across the industry.
From application to a training start date, the process typically takes anywhere from six weeks to six months, depending on the airline, how the hiring round is run and how quickly you move through each stage. Gulf carriers often move faster than European or US airlines.
Many airlines ask for around a year of customer service or hospitality experience, but very few require previous cabin crew experience. Candidates from retail, hospitality, healthcare and other customer-facing backgrounds are considered alongside experienced crew.
Different candidates struggle with different stages. The online assessment stage catches the most people off guard, simply because they didn’t know it was coming or didn’t prepare for it. The Assessment Day is often described as the most demanding, because you are being observed continuously for several hours.
An Open Day is a walk-in event that anybody who meets the requirements can attend without applying first. An Assessment Day is invitation-only, and is where candidates are assessed through group exercises, role plays and other tasks. Our guide to the difference between an Open Day and an Assessment Day explains which route you are on.
Generally, no. You don’t need to pay for the information required to get through cabin crew recruitment. The Cabin Crew Forum exists because a free alternative to paid courses was needed, built from direct experience of these recruitment events.
Nothing. They are different titles for the same job, depending on where you are in the world. Both came into use as the airline industry moved away from titles such as steward, stewardess, and air hostess. Flight attendant was adopted in North America, while cabin crew is used in the UK, the Middle East and much of Europe.
Ready to Start?
Begin by perfecting your initial application in our CV and resume writing hub and work through each stage in order. Good luck.