Cabin crew jobs are among the best in the world.

You travel to see the world and get paid for it!

But people will definitely ask:

– What’s the salary like? 

– How irregular is the work schedule? 

– What do we do besides serving and smiling?

Read below to get a little more information about what constitutes the cabin crew job.

3 Absolute Facts About Cabin Crew

1 Safety Officer 

Your main job function is looking out for the security and safety of yourself, fellow crew and the passengers on board.

This means you have to do pre-flight safety checks to make sure the plane is safe to fly on.

If passengers get sick, you’ll have to give first aid. You’ll be trained to administer mouth-to-mouth on passengers who aren’t breathing.

On board deaths aren’t uncommon and is something you’ll have to be prepared to handle.

In extreme cases, you’ll be tasked to prepare for emergency landings.

You’ll be that person whom those nervous passengers will be turning to for hope and courage.

2 Working At Unsociable Hours

Cabin crew jobs involve working very long hours.

Most of the time, you’ll be reporting for duty just about the time other “normal” people are getting ready to sleep.

You’ll have to stay overnight at a hotel at one of the destinations away from friends and family.

You will have to work during holidays or weekends.

You’ll definitely miss many important family events.

If you’re married, you will spend time away from your spouse and children.

You’ll have duties where you’ll be on call or standby, which means you might have to report for work on a short notice.

You may think this isn’t a big deal for you right now. But wait until you start flying.

A lot of cabin crew have left this job because they couldn’t bear spending so much time away from loved ones.

Remember that it’s really part of the job!

3 Paycheck

For airlines in the Middle East, the starting annual salary of a newly-qualified flight attendant is at USD 25,000 a year.

As you gain more experience, your salary increases to USD 30,000 – 35,000.

When you move up the ladder and become a supervisor, your salary can be in the boundaries of USD 45,000 a year or more.

Aside from the tax-free salary, carrier flight attendants in the Middle East enjoy other perks such as discounts on major hotels, shops, and restaurants.

Sadly though, this isn’t the case for many airlines around the world.

Most U.S. carriers, for example, pay their flight attendants a starting salary less than USD20,000 a year.

For the majority of Asian airlines, the starting salaries could be below USD15,000 a year.

Photo credit: Nova Torres