When most people think of flight attendants, they usually picture smiling women in skirts and high heels.
While this stereotype has its place, there’s an often-ignored facet of the profession: the male flight attendant.
Ever wondered about the advantages that come with being a male flight attendant?
Let’s explore the intricacies in this article – we’re delving into free flights, an unbeatable lifestyle, and the joy of collaborating with some truly awesome people
1) Free flights
One awesome thing about being a Flight Attendant is getting free flights anywhere in the world.
Most airlines provide this benefit to their flight crews, often establishing agreements with big discounts on multiple carriers. Also, your registered beneficiaries, including parents, significant others, and kids, can also benefit from discounted flights.
But here’s the catch – you’ll be flying standby.
That means you’re not guaranteed a spot on the flight. It’s a bit like a gamble: if there are empty seats, you get to hop on board! So you might need to be spontaneous with your travel plans.
2) Travel and get paid
During layovers, Flight Attendants earn an allotted amount of per diem pay. So, you are not only getting paid for your flight times, but an added per diem while you are on the road.
This per diem pay is essentially compensation for the time spent on layovers, and it allows flight attendants to explore the cities they visit or simply relax during their downtime.
Let’s see an example, if you have a per diem rate of $3 per hour and a 50-hour layover, you would earn an additional $150 (50 hours * $3 per hour) on top of what you earn for the flights.
If your flights amount to, let’s say, 12 hours at $22 per flight hour, that’s $264.
Combining the per diem and flight pay, you’d be making a total of $414 for the entire trip.
Getting paid to enjoy new cities. That’s the flight attendant’s life!
3) Meet people and make lifelong friends from all over
Being a Flight Attendant, you’re constantly meeting new people. Whether it’s your crew or passengers from all over, the social scene is always buzzing.
And here’s the cool part – since you can fly for free,it’s the perfect time to visit friends scattered around the globe.
Your job isn’t just about getting from point A to B; it’s a chance to build a global network of friends and make connections that last a lifetime.
4) Career possibilities
While being a Flight Attendant is simply awesome and comes with exciting benefits, there is career growth within the airline industry.
As a Flight Attendant, you can become a purser, or lead flight attendant, a language speaker, be part of the hiring program, or even train the new flight attendant hires. Many will also move their way into becoming a flight attendant supervisor.
Each company has a variety of different positions that will give you more experience and allow you to grow with the company.
5) Salary
The starting pay as a flight attendant typically isn’t a substantial amount but it all depends on how much you want to work, the type of trips you work, and the pay will continue to increase each year.
The average Flight Attendant salary in the United States typically falls between $32,000 and $87,000.
Check the best paying Airlines in the USA.
But a Flight Attendant’s salary is based mainly on their hourly flight hours and seniority.
Senior Flight Attendants that stay with the company for years can even max out in pay, so it definitely pays to be loyal to the company that you decide to work for.
6) Male Flight Attendants and the gender gap
In the Flight Attendant industry, you will see a lot of female Flight Attendants.
It is definitely a female dominated industry, so it’s amazing to see male Flight Attendants breaching that gender gap.
However, both male and female flight attendants are considered equal when it comes to starting out and building seniority.
7) A career in demand
Now is most definitely the time to become a Flight Attendant if you are interested.
You will find that almost every airline is hiring!
Not to mention, this will continue to be a career that has high demand.
Why?
Not only are you able to: get paid to fly, have amazing layovers, fly standby on your own airline, fly standby on code share airlines, have lots of days off in a month, an increase of pay each year that is contractual, etc.
This is a career that will always be expanding and have an increase in demand.
If you are interested in becoming a male flight attendant, you will need to meet some basic requirements, which may vary from airline to airline.
However, some general requirements typically include:
- A high school diploma or equivalent
- Fluency in English
- Excellent customer service skills
- At least 21 years old
- Must also be able to complete company physical assessing capability to meet flight attendant essential functions
Once you have met the basic requirements, you will need to apply for flight attendant positions with airlines of your choice, fill out an application form, participate in several interviews and pass a training course with the airline.
If you are able to successfully complete the application process and training, you will be well on your way to becoming a male flight attendant!
8) Nice working environment
The work environment can vary, but in general, colleagues are nice and you’ll see how easy it is to bond with other flight attendants.
The camaraderie between flight attendants is extraordinary.
Most of the people I’ve met at work, I’ve clicked with right away.
And many of them have become my best friends now.
Even if you don’t get along with your coworkers, you will only have to work with them for a few days at a time. There is also something called a no fly list. If you really don’t enjoy flying with someone, you can add them to this list, so the odds of you working with them in the future are very slim.
Unlike normal 9-5 jobs, where you could be stuck with the same coworkers daily, here you could fly with someone once, and not see them again for years.
9) Lifestyle
The lifestyle of a Flight Attendant is absolutely different from the typical 9-5 job which makes it adventurous and different every day.
While Flight Attendants are usually always on the go in different cities and through several airports, the flexibility and ability to control your lifestyle is incredible.
Some Flight Attendants opt to work day turns (where you come back home to sleep) and not have layovers, while others may decide that they enjoy being on the road for a few days at a time.
It all depends on the individual and how you would like your lifestyle to be. It’s amazing to have so many people who have different wants/needs in their lives. There is truly something out there for everyone.
This is the beauty of the job!
10) Rewarding career
While being a Flight Attendant is a highly sought-after position, it is also one of the most rewarding careers.
People fly everyday for a variety of reasons, including work functions, vacations, funerals, births, graduations, reunions, and sporting events.
While not every person is flying for a happy reason, it is a Flight Attendant’s job to make that flight the safest and most comfortable flight for all passengers.
Flight attendants also train for emergency situations such as: medicals, fires, and evacuations.
Oftentimes, Flight Attendants wear several different caps and are able to react to any situation thrown at them.
The feeling of getting passengers from point A to point B safely and comfortably is absolutely rewarding.
Another huge benefit to this job is not only the flexibility, but the amount of days off you can have monthly. You will find that many Flight Attendants have second careers. This career truly does afford you the availability to do a multitude of things.
11) Flexible schedule
One of the best perks of being a Flight Attendant is the ability to have a flexible schedule.
While each airline is different, typically you can work as little or as much as you want.
Some Flight Attendants opt to work night shifts while others prefer mornings.
Depending on your seniority, you may even get the schedule of your dreams and have nice layovers in interesting cities.
Finally, having a flexible schedule means that you can plan vacations and use your free flight benefits to see the world!
12) Working with new people
A huge benefit of being a Flight Attendant is your ability to work with new people. Essentially every trip, you are working with a new crew that you’ve never flown with before. There is the off chance that you will be flying with someone you know, but for the most part, this isn’t the case.
Not only does this give you an amazing opportunity to meet new people, but many of these individuals could become your life long friends.
It also gives you the opportunity to see who you like flying with. If there is someone you don’t vibe with, you really only have to work with them for a few days at the most.
Not to mention, your layovers are your time. You can truly do whatever you want. If you decide you want to explore with the people you are working with, you can definitely do that. If you decide you would rather explore on your own, you can do that as well.
This job really gives you the flexibility to cultivate the relationships that you want. Some of my best friends are from flying a trip together, and we’ve cultivated our relationship from that point forward.
You will end up with life long friendships, and many of them will live around the world. What a great way to use your flight benefits!
13) Sharing your job with your significant other
Many in the industry have significant others, and this job is an amazing way to not only share this job with them, but to give them the opportunity to see the world as well.
An amazing perk of our job is being able to add a companion to your flight benefits, or if you are already married, to add them in a way that they get the same benefits you have.
I have been able to take my boyfriend on so many amazing layovers, and for us to plan trips to places that we would have normally never been able to afford.
If you don’t have a significant other, many airlines also give you an allotted amount of buddy passes that you can utilize for your friends/family/etc. They could join you on a trip, space permitted, or plan a trip to a destination your airline flies.
Not only are you able to cultivate relationships with coworkers, but you are able to cultivate relationships you have already developed. It really is an amazing way to make new memories!
14) The world is your oyster
We’ve stated before that a huge perk of this job is your travel benefits, but the world truly is your oyster. It gives you the opportunity to experience new cities and countries around the world. Not only can this help with understanding our world, but it can give you insight into places you might want to live.
Not everyone has the opportunity to experience different places before they make the decision to move. Or, to pick a place to create a community of friends. This job definitely offers you the opportunity to see what is out there.
Where do you truly fit in? Is it where you’ve always grown up, or do you want to step out of your comfort zone and experience somewhere different?
Many airlines have hubs in different cities, and if you really like where they are located, you can choose to transfer to that hub. Or, you can commute from essentially anywhere in the world, if you really want to. This job is one of the only ones I know of, where you can live somewhere entirely different from where you actually live.
I think a flight attendant is a great occupation, and I’d definitely love to see more men in the industry.
100% agree with you
I’m a humanities and social sciences, when you’re humanities is there have a chance to flight attendant? Cause I want to be a flight attendant soon. But I dont know if humanities is okay to be a tourism
Shouldn’t be a problem Joseph! You stand a chance if you have good communication and interpersonal skills.
Being a former f/a, everything mentioned is this article is true. You didn’t mention how much fun you can have. For ex, on the red eye flights, I would make the announcement when people should get up before the seatbelt sign is turned on for landing. Only a couple might get up. But when you pour water from a full carafe into an empty carafe over the PA system, it’s funny to see how many people get up. My problems with that situation was greatly reduced.
i will love to become a flight attedant one day