Edited by NormanJB at 17-4-2017 02:08 PM
Tall and slender, young and beautiful, flawless complexion, perfect hair and makeup − these are just some of the stereotypes the public have when it comes to the physical aspects of a stewardess.
But while being easy on the eyes is subjective, are these really requisites for all hopeful cabin crew recruits?
A particular airline company found itself in hot water recently when Malay Mail exposed how interviewees were asked to unbutton their top for physical inspection, to which the airline in mention justified their act by deeming it a long-time policy practiced by the industry.
This unearthed a loophole in the guidelines, policies and regulations regulated by the Ministry of Transportation – to which the ministry has promptly addressed with a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in regards to recruitment, and is currently being formatted as we speak.
But condemnable as the incident may be, could it be that our perceptions toward the industry emphasising on beauty has put a pressure on airline companies to ensure the physical standards of applicants are nothing short of perfect?
Here’s What Airlines Look For In A Flight Attendant
Reaching out to FireFly Airline, head of cabin crew Lynette Maria Isaac relayed that the airline company carries out approximately between three and four recruitments on an annual basis and the turn out per walk-in interview stands between 200 and 300 candidates.
“Some of the pre-requisites that our hopeful candidates have to meet include a minimum height of 157cm; a Malaysian citizen; at least an SPM holder with three passes, including Bahasa Malaysia, and a credit in English; and aged between 18 and 35 years old.
“On top of that, candidates with knowledge of other languages, or have prior cabin crew experience or have a customer service background will be an added advantage,” the woman with 10 years of experience under her belt shared.
“And our policy stipulates that applicants must be clear of any criminal records as well as not being pregnant at the time of recruitment for health reasons.”
Upon meeting the aforementioned prerequisites, Lynette added that the candidates will move on to the first phase of recruitment that consists of five elements, which she has kindly explained as per the table below:
“Once candidates have passed the first phase of recruitment, they will be notified by our Human Resource (HR) department within two weeks and are subsequently waitlisted to go through our pre-employment medical check-up – which determines whether the candidate are hired or not.
Pic: Lynette and her son,
Ryan“Assuming that they’ve passed the medical check-up – conducted by our panel of medical experts – the candidates move on to an intensive three months training to become a full-fledged flight attendant,” Lynette added.
Lynette highlighted that the training will encompass grooming class; deportment; voice enhancer for announcement reading; first aid;
emergency safety procedures; cabin services (air craft types and its respective procedures); and line training, whereby the trainees undergo seven flight trainings under the observation of the operating crew before they are permitted to operate solo.
She then debunks the general notion pertaining the airline industry that beauty comes first to become a full-fledge flight attendant.
“What FireFly look for primarily in a candidate is someone with a pleasant personality, charismatic and fun-loving. Beauty is not a concern as the trainees will go through grooming training sessions.
“People tend to think and look at flight attendants as flying waitresses and sadly, as a person with beauty without brain – you will be surprise that we do have cabin crew members with diplomas and degrees,” she revealed.
With that, MD decided to reach out to various airlines to enquire on the primary trait that they look for in a hopeful flight attendant as well as to how they conduct their grooming assessments, and our findings are as follows:
It is plain to see based on the criteria we gathered, while beauty is not a main emphasis, cabin crew are expected to have excellent personal presentation and image.
Before the interview came to a halt, Lynette parted with MD with a simple reminder for current and aspiring flight attendants:
“Always strive to want to be known as a professional and for having a high degree of self-discipline. Working with an airline can be exciting.
So remember that this is just the beginning so always expand your knowledge and skill – from customer services, to languages and conversational skills, general knowledge and more.
“But above all, always exude confidence and be yourself!.”
| 
Post time 17-4-2017 02:05 PM
变色卡
