Air Cabin Crew Job Assessment Procedures

Aspirants for the post of cabin crew have to go through an assessment test. It is the airlines’ way of gauging your skills and figuring out if you are right for the role. The assessment tests are quite similar across most of the major airlines and there are a number of tests that are taken before the firm decides whether or not to rope you in.

1. Reach Test – In a reach test, your ability to reach the emergency equipment in times of crisis will be tested. Candidates will be asked to reach a marker set at 210-212 cm. You can prepare for this test by making such a marker at home and practising on it every day. This is one of the most elementary tests, and if you lose this, you lose the job.

2. Maths Test –The maths test involves questions like passenger count on a flight, the number of spare seats left and in-flight retail – how much a passenger as spent – and questions related to currency exchange, where you will have to perform conversions between currencies.

3. English Test – In most airlines in the Middle East, English is the primary language used, so your proficiency in English will also be put to the test. The most common test is making you read a passage aloud and facing a volley of questions related to what you’ve just read, to make sure you’ve understood.

4. Alternative Language Test – If you are fluent in a language other than English, you will be asked to converse with a native speaker of that language. You will be asked to read public announcements in the language and also handle passenger issues.

5. General Knowledge Test – A general knowledge test is very often questions about airport codes and some general information about the city the flight is landing at or where the particular job posting is. So keeping yourself informed of things like these can come in handy.

6. Psychometric test – A number of personality-based questions and multiple choice questions will be directed at you. The key here is answering with the first thing that comes into your mind.

7. Presentation – Your presentation skills will also be put to the test during the assessment programme, where you’ll be asked to pick an item – a bottle of water, for instance – and describe the various other uses it can be put to. Here you’ll probably need to do some out of the box thinking.

8. Group Discussion – This is mostly a brainstorming type of test in which you’ll have to come up with ideas for promoting a certain destination the airline flies to. This mostly will have to do with finding the right features of a particular place and using that in promoting the service.

9. Group Task – This is another group-related test, but to gauge how well you perform in emergency situations, like being trapped as a group on a desert island. This exercise will mostly test your skills when functioning in a group.

10. Role Play – In this test, recruiters play the part of customers and test your abilities in handling customers in their varied moods. The level-headedness you display in this test can be crucial to your bagging the job.

Essential qualities for a cabin-crew job

Working as cabin crew on an aeroplane can be a very demanding job. You work long hours dealing with passengers of various hues. But it is also a very rewarding job, and it only enriches your experience of the world. If being a cabin crew member is your dream job, here are some of the skills you need to nurture before you finally bag that job.

Physical fitness

On a flight, cabin crews may be required to walk hundreds of times across the plane, pushing food trolleys, demonstrating safety requirements to passengers, in moments of turbulence and to attend to passengers’ requirements. All of this requires an aspirant to keep in good shape.

Language skills

A key skill required of a cabin crew member is the ability to communicate clearly. Passengers on a plane often look towards them for help. Besides having a fluent knowledge of English, you will also be called upon to demonstrate safety skills in such a way that the passenger is not left confused.

Personality

Working in an aeroplane as cabin crew also calls for the best personal qualities. You’ll have to deal with passengers from several walks of life and of varying temperaments, so how you deal with them could be a great test of your character, in terms of confidence, temperament and behaviour.

Mental strength

The key mental skills to be cultivated here are confidence and calmness, plus keeping a clear head at all times. An aeroplane is bound to face risks of turbulence, and while the passengers are bound to get panicky, it is the job of the cabin crew to take the appropriate safety measures and give them assurance.