How To Become A Flight Attendant, Air Hostess In Nigeria..Step By Step Guide To Success

How To Become A Flight Attendant, Air Hostess In Nigeria..Step By Step Guide To Success

By Our Reporter

It is becoming more common for young ladies to desire the job of a flight attendant. However, this increasing desire does not correspondingly translate to increasing job offers.

What is the role of a flight attendant?

The job of a flight attendant basically involves working for an Airline as customer service personnel for flight passengers. Apart from this, a flight attendant or air hostess does the following on a flight:

• Control of aircraft cabin.

As part of the cabin crew, a flight attendant helps to guide passengers and to direct the activities of the cabin prior, during and after a flight. For this reason, it is necessary for flight attendants to possess some specific people skills which will help them in dealing with passengers.

[adinserter block=”20″]

• Victuals service.

An air hostess also helps to serve the passengers with food and drinks. During a flight, the cabin crew members attend to passengers by giving them both food and drink, more like what a waiter does in a restaurant.

• Inventorying.

This involves taking stock of all items in the aircraft’s cabin before flight takeoff and after landing. Inventorying or stock-taking is done in order to ensure that every passenger gets his luggage after landing as well as to account for payments done during flight.

Advantages of flight attendant job

• An opportunity to travel the world.

Being a flight attendant in Nigeria offers you the opportunity to be able to travel and see the world. It is a great way of experiencing different places in a fun way. It is common for air hostesses to visit about 5 different places in Nigeria in a single day or to be in two different countries on the same day.

• Good remuneration.

Aside from the advantage of traveling the world, being a flight attendant also means that you get to be paid a good salary. Based on research, a flight attendant in Nigeria earns a monthly salary of at least one hundred thousand Naira for domestic flights. This figure rises considerably when it is an international flight.

• An opportunity to meet people and extend your network.

As an air hostess, you have the opportunity of meeting with different people on different flights. This can help you to extend your network.

Requirements to becoming a flight attendant in Nigeria

There are a few requirements by any person that desires a career in the flight attendance profession. For starters, you need to be a lady (although men can also apply), this is the first and most important pre-requisite to becoming a flight attendant in Nigeria. The others include the following.

• A Higher education degree.

While this may not be required by every aviation training school, it may nonetheless give you an edge in the application process. The tertiary school degree can be in any discipline but a degree in hospitality or tourism related field is preferable. That being said, it doesn’t mean that you cannot become a flight attendant if you don’t have a degree.

• Passion or interest for the profession.

Like most other professions, being a successful flight attendant entails that you must have an interest in the job before applying. The reason for this is not farfetched; if you don’t have a passion for the job and you are only pursuing the career just for the monetary benefits, at a time you will be bored about it and even the financial gains you are benefiting may not be able to keep you in the job. Thus, it becomes imperative that your desire to become a flight attendant is one borne out of your love for the job; every other thing is just secondary.

• Customer service traits.

This is also important for any intending flight attendant. Since you will be dealing with people most of the time, then your attitude (jovial or hostile) matters a lot. Before you can be admitted to an aviation training school, your attitude towards people will be assessed among other traits. If you are not cordial towards people, then you need to work on your cordiality before applying.

• Be Physically Appealing.

Although this is not the most important requirement for becoming a flight attendant, it is nevertheless an essential one. It is not to say that you have to be a beauty model or have a stunning figure before you can be a flight attendant. It simply means that you need to be at least physically appealing. Moreover, there is a minimum average height for flight attendants, which if you don’t reach disqualifies you. You need to be at least 5ft 3 inches tall before you can apply.

• Be At Least 18 Years Of Age

Before you can become an air hostess in Nigeria, you are required to be at least 18 years old. The age limit can extend up to 21 years or more, but it is generally preferable to start the application process when you are young. This is because most of the Airlines operating in the country (and even the world) opt for younger ladies as flight attendants than older ones.

While the above are the basic requirements for becoming a flight attendant in Nigeria for domestic or local travels, you will need more in order to be eligible for international flights.

Some of the requirements for international flight attendants include the following:

• Fluency in at least two internationally recognized languages.

The fact that you are a Nigerian gives you an advantage as English is our official language. However, you need to be fluent in both spoken and written English language. In addition, it is important that you learn another international language such as French or Spanish.

[adinserter block=”24″]

• A valid international passport.

To be able to go on board an international flight, it is imperative that you possess a valid Nigerian passport.

• Medical fitness.

This includes being in good mental and overall health as well as having perfect eyesight. You should not be suffering from any major illness and must be within the recommended weight.

• Marital status.

Some Airlines prefer their cabin crew members to be unmarried. This doesn’t mean that married women are not eligible to become flight attendants.

• You must have undergone training in survival.

Flight attendants on international flights must undergo survival training to prepare them in the event of a disaster. This training usually involves educating all members of the cabin crew in survival skills like food gathering, shelter provision, and calls for help.

What are the necessary steps to become a flight attendant in Nigeria?

If you meet the above-outlined requirements, then you stand a good chance of becoming an air hostess in Nigeria.

The following steps will guide on what you need to do to become a flight attendant.

• Get admitted and go to an aviation training school.

The first step to starting your journey in the aviation industry as an air hostess is to first seek admission into an appropriate school. There is a good number of aviation training schools in Nigeria where intending flight attendants can enroll in and get trained. A good example is the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT) in Zaria, Kaduna State. In NCAT, you will have to go through an 8-week intensive training process that costs about N500,000.

• Search and apply for flight attendant jobs in Nigeria.

After successfully undergoing the required training in a reputable institution the next step is to begin the search for air hostess jobs Airlines’ websites. It is important to state here that there are some Airlines that accept application offers from ladies who have not been previously trained in the field. This means that you can equally apply for flight attendant job listings even when you have not been trained; you can undergo the training after the Airline has accepted your application.

Flight attendant jobs or even aviation related jobs are not easy to come by; this is because of the fact that most Airlines choose to stay on already established flight routes and schedules than on opting for creating new routes. Based on this, the application process for air hostess jobs in Nigeria can be a rigorous one. Hence, you need to be prepared for the stiff competition by crafting an outstanding resume (CV) that clearly exhibits your qualifications and professional experience related to the job.

Becoming a flight attendant in Nigeria involves so many things; moreover, the job openings for flight attendant jobs in the country are almost always limited. This doesn’t necessarily mean that people don’t get the jobs, on the contrary, most people who put their minds to getting the job actually get it and remain in it for many years.

While this article is meant to be a guide on how to become an air hostess in Nigeria, it doesn’t translate as an authority on the entire process, as there might be slight differences. Nevertheless, if you desire a career in the aviation industry as a flight attendant or air hostess, going through the steps outlined in this article will give you a good head start. The rest of the journey will depend on how resourceful and passionate you are about the career.