AIRLINE ACE
  • ✈︎About
  • ✈︎Flight Attendant Fast Track
  • ✈︎Meet Carlin Clarke
  • ✈︎Blog
  • ✈︎Newsletter
  • ✈︎Store
  • ✈︎About
  • ✈︎Flight Attendant Fast Track
  • ✈︎Meet Carlin Clarke
  • ✈︎Blog
  • ✈︎Newsletter
  • ✈︎Store
Search by typing & pressing enter

YOUR CART

Airline ACE 
✈︎ Blog

Get an insiders view on the Airline Industry, Crew Lifestyle, Airline Interview Process, and the Flight Attendant Job Outlook.

Categories

All Airline Checklist Basic Requirements Become A Flight Attendant Career Assessment Interview Tips The Need For Pre-Qualification The Reality Of Getting Hired White Paper

⬇︎Scroll down for more...

7/27/2019 0 Comments

Interview tips: On time performance

Picture

Arriving late....

On-time performance is the key to success in the aviation industry and nothing less is expected from you. Punctuality to your appointments, interview, and job show both respect and responsibility. Your airline will be depending on you to show up on time without needing reminders and regardless of any excuses. Being able to show an “on-time performance” history in your experience will illustrate you are reliable and accountable. 

Most successful flight attendants adopt a “backup for the backup” policy, meaning that in order to ensure they get to work on time, in case their first plan to get to work fails, they have a backup. Many traditional jobs require this way of thinking.... for example, planning to leave 30 minutes early in case you hit traffic. The aviation industry is not as forgiving as most other workplaces and because of this, crew members always have a second back up plan in case their first backup plan and their original plan don't work out - hence, a backup for the backup. 

Essentially, having 2 backup plans along with a first option - allowing for 3 minimum options to get to work on time is a best practice for crew members who want to keep their job. Sometimes this means traveling to work a day or two early, or taking the earliest option for commuting into to work whether via plane, train, taxi, or subway. Either way, ensure you are early for your report time and allow for the time to get to your crew lounge after parking your car, or arriving via other transportation.

Seem a bit over the top? Well, trust me....you'll employ this philosophy yourself, no problem, once you're hired and the understanding of how important on-time is in this industry finally dawns on you. 

Interview tip:
Make a quick list of 1-2 previous experiences you’ve had that required you to be on-time, or where being on-time was an important factor in accomplishing your responsibilities. List the job/experience, then next to it explain why being on time was crucial for the success of the event or how it would affect your employer/leader negatively or positively.

Underneath that I want you to write down what you did well in that experience and also what you did poorly. Then write a simple prescription for what you could have done to change or improve (even if your response is positive) that event.

Here are some questions to reflect on:
  1. How did my on-time performance affect this experience/situation?
  2. What did I do poorly that contributed negatively to my performance?
  3. What did I do well that contribute positively to my performance?
  4. What, if anything, would I do differently and why?


As you answer these questions, you should become aware of your mindset or personal philosophy as you pen your answers to paper. Sometimes that can be a real wake-up call for people. We don't always realize why we do things, or what roadblocks we've put in front of ourselves and often blame something in our external world.

Here's the truth.....you're 100% responsible for the results of your actions. 

Sound harsh? It's not.... and here's why:

Everything that happens in our life we have a choice over. A choice to plan ahead. A choice in how we will respond. Airlines are HUGE on personal accountability and that means, if you left late because you snoozed your alarm because you didn't get to bed on time the night before and encountered heavy traffic on your way into work, stopped for coffee anyway, and showed up to work 7 minutes late, are you the kind of person who thinks,  what's the big deal?

You'll get fired from your airline job by the 3rd time you let something like that happen. Here's how the airlines - and your inflight supervisor - sees it:

You chose to snooze your alarm instead of get out of bed. (You have no personal responsibility). You chose to leave late to work and as a result, encountered heavy traffic. (your personal responsibility). You stopped for coffee anyway causing an even further delay. (again...where is your personal responsibility?). You could have chosen to get up on time, or you could have chosen to leave earlier. You could have chosen to skip the coffee... etc. Bottom line is you are in charge of you. And at the airlines, it's up to you to make it happen.

If this sounds crazy to you - I task you with interviewing as many crew members as you can and you'll see they will confirm what I am telling you. Being late is a big deal and cause for dismissal at an airline. If you're in the habit of showing up when you feel like it, or are otherwise chronically late as many women are, you're going to need to adjust this personality trait. Practice being on time. Actually, if you're chronically late, practice being 5 minutes early - make that your deadline. Stake your life on it - make it that important. And if necessary, start employing a backup plan. Or even a "backup for the backup" if need be. Whatever it takes. You need to master this skill and prove you have it working in your life and experiences already. 

Picture
0 Comments

7/27/2019 0 Comments

What exactly are airlines looking for?

Picture
The dream of traveling the globe as a flight attendant is one that is shared by millions around the world; people, like you and I, who truly enjoy learning about new places and new cultures. But, it takes a special person to dare to live out that dream. You see, for many the dream of being a flight attendant is only a daydream, wishful thinking, and without any real intent to act on it. 

You may not be a flight attendant officially just yet, but you know in your heart it's who you are at your core! And it's not just about getting to travel the globe, or having flexibility in your schedule, or walking the concourse with a confident air....you would do just about anything to live out this passion! 

If that's the level of passion you feel about becoming a flight attendant then I know without a doubt you belong in this industry. The competition today is greater than it ever has been in the history of aviation! You have to be willing to do what it takes in order to beat the competition and fight for your passion and achieve your dream.

So, let me let you in on what's currently going on in the industry and why it's becoming more challenging to get on as a Flight Attendant:

1. The commercial airline industry is ever-changing. In the regulation era, 1930s-1970s, the flight attendant was originally there for passenger comfort, but as commercial aviation grew the position morphed into passenger safety and comfort. 

In the post-deregulation era, 1978-2001, flight attendant duties became more and more focused on customer service as airlines, now in a free competition environment, did whatever they could to out-do each other. It was survival of the fittest.

With the industry-changing events of 9/11 and those trailing, commercial airlines, the FAA, ICAO, IATA, and other aviation associations throughout the world, became challenged with how to manage the continually changing needs that they were now facing every day in terms of security and safety and out of necessity, turned to cabin crew as a "last line of defense."

Today, the flight attendant position focus is spread across 5 primary areas: safety, security, threat-and-error management, critical thinking, and customer service. 

2. Airline carriers want people who already have experience in the aviation industry, and specifically the flight attendant position. A flight attendant has many hats they are expected to wear in their role on board a typical flight and airlines can't teach you all of them. They have realized that they have to find people who already have the qualities they need, and then they can teach those people the technical skills the FAA requires for the position - emergency and medical procedures.

Some of the qualities that are needed for the various roles are things that can't be taught, only gained through experience. Airlines also feel they can't risk the investment to pay to teach their employees these qualities and so they do what they can to recruit special, well-rounded individuals who have already acquired these qualities through various life, work, and education experiences.

3. Because of the ever-changing needs of the industry, airlines want people who know what they are getting into. They want you to understand and be okay with the fact that the work is unpredictable, that you have to work your way up through their seniority system, that you will work holidays and weekends and overnights as a regular part of the job, that you will be dealing with difficult passengers, experience disrupted body clocks, serving disgruntled customers and even colleagues.

The higher the standard for the flight attendant position, the stronger the applicants who are attracted to it, and the higher the caliber of employees an airline ends up with. This all means fierce competition. But all this competition is good and pays off for you as well. This higher standard helps the airline perform well, which strengthens performance, and results in increased salaries, and you end up with a better paying job, a good company to work for, and a solid career that is going places.

Picture
0 Comments

7/22/2019 0 Comments

Is this the Career for you?

Picture
A lot of people express interest in being a flight attendant, musing about flying here or flying there and wouldn't it be so great to travel the world! But very few truly grasp what the job actually entails and further, it is near to impossible to get any sort of experience without it being on the job. 

So, while our musings keep us focused on our goal - and yes, it is so totally great to travel the world! - there is the reality of whether or not one is truly meant for this kind of career.

Must love people.

For starters, you must love people. All kinds. All ethnicities. All religions. Because you're going to encounter every possible sort of person there is in the world and you'll be required to represent your airline by being welcoming, friendly, and past any personal prejudices. Honestly, though for most people who apply for this job, they find all people really interesting. Even fascinating. And are eager to meet and learn all about them.

Work load

Another aspect of the job that is not easily experienced without working the job is the work load involved. There are physical requirements, mental requirements, and even emotional burdens that come with the job, like putting aside your own emotional stuff and being present with your crew and passengers.

The best way to decide if this is what you want is to take our Flight Attendant Career Assessment and imagine the scenarios and how you would respond. What is your natural inclination in each situation? It just takes a few minutes....
Find out if this is career is the right fit for you. 
Take the Flight Attendant Career Assessment now!
Flight Attendant Career Assessment

Picture
0 Comments
<<Previous

    author

    Carlin Clarke is a Flight Attendant Purser (retired) and Professor of Aviation Science. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Human Capital Development, with focus speciality in the Flight Attendant workforce.

    Categories

    All Airline Checklist Basic Requirements Become A Flight Attendant Career Assessment Interview Tips The Need For Pre-Qualification The Reality Of Getting Hired White Paper

    Archives

    July 2019

    RSS Feed

Picture

​Privacy Policy  ✈︎  Store  ✈︎  FA Fast Track Workshop  ✈︎  Contact  ✈︎  Phone 

​© 2014-2019 Airline ACE™,  a Clarke Essentials, LLC venture,  all rights reserved.