Timing is one of the most important aspects when you are searching for a job. To increase your chances of getting hired, you need to be in the right place at the right time. Especially when we are talking about seasonal jobs.
With that in mind, let’s talk about when is the best time to apply to be a flight attendant in today’s employment market, and boost your chances of being hired!
What is the best time of year to apply for a job as a Flight Attendant?
The good news is that anytime is a good time for sending off your resume to an airline company.
There are always airlines hiring, especially the big ones.
So there’s no need to wait for ‘the right time’, if you want that airline job, get your resume off as soon as it is finished and polished to a high standard.
But, that being said, there are some months that may be better than others.
Generally about 3 months before the high season hits is a good time to get your name in front of the airline that you’d like to work for.
For example:
In Europe, the busiest season for the aviation industry is summer – which is from June to September.
So if you get your resume or application off from February or March, you will be in good time for the summer peak season.
Please take into account that you’ll need to allow enough time to be able to be called up for different interviews, pass them, and do your training.
This is usually 3 to 6 weeks depending on the airline before you actually start.
So the moral of the story is: if you are thinking of waiting until it’s peak season, you will be too late because the airline will have already hired all the flight attendants that they need.
Summer isn’t the only peak time in an airline’s year
There are also other high seasons in the travel industry, such as Christmas or Easter Holidays.
This very much depends on the country of origin.
For example: in Vietnam, China, Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia one of the busiest seasons of them all is Chinese New Year.
The same applies for countries that celebrate Ramadan.
So the message is the same for airlines in these regions – always apply around 3 months before any seasonal peak periods in order to have enough time to be well prepared and ready.
Another good tip is to do your research (which you always do, right?) and apply when an airline is planning to expand, open new routes or a new base somewhere. If you read in the news or hear this, it means that they will probably be hiring flight attendants that speak the Language of Destination (LOD) or hiring more people to fill the new vacancies.
Is now in 2024 a good time?
Definitely!
There have been a lot of layoffs in the last few years due to the coronavirus, but now most airlines are starting to recover and operate their flights to pre-pandemic levels and they need people.
This is a great time to start applying!
Check online and you’ll see that companies such as :
Emirates, Qatar, Etihad, American Airlines, PSA, Frontier, United, British Airways, Qantas, Aer Lingus, KLM… are hiring again.
They need staff, you’d like a job, so take advantage while the going is good.
Note: Some airlines, like Emirates or Qatar, may have a job advertisement published permanently because they do open days quite often, but it doesn’t mean that these happen every month. Again, research is the key.
Tips to apply for a flight attendant job and be successful
- Apply to at least 5 -10 airlines. You may not be called by all of them, at least not immediately. So you increase your odds of getting a call back if you apply to as many as you can.
- Don’t forget to personalize and update your resume to the airline that you’re applying to. Your resume is the key to be called for the interview. You can check how to do well in a flight attendant interview here.
- Follow all the instructions. If they ask for a resume in PDF format, don’t send a screenshot in JPG. If they have filtering questions, don’t skip any, answer all of them. The airline needs to know that you understand instructions and can follow them exactly as asked.
- Don’t apply again if you’ve been rejected – you need to wait 6 months to 1 year to re-apply again. Your previous application will be flagged on the computer if you try again before the waiting period is over, so don’t do it and ruin any chance that you may have.
Conclusion
Don’t overthink the timing of your job application or resume, anytime can be good to apply for a flight attendant’s job! By all means, be smart and try to pick the most likely time to increase your chances, but my recommendations about seasonal peaks and new routes are just that – recommendations. The truth is that any month, any time is a good time.
Good luck!
