10 Flight Attendant Interview Questions And Answers

Scored an interview with an airline for a coveted flight attendant position? Then it’s time to get your head out of the clouds — at least until you’re on the job — and brush up on your interviewing skills. Prepare to land the high-flying career of your dreams by practicing these 10 flight attendant interview questions and answers: 

1. Why do you want to work for this airline?

Airlines work hard to differentiate themselves from the competition, so in your response focus on how your personality and values align with that of the specific airline’s. Do your research on the company’s website to pinpoint whether they’re a fun, casual airline that caters to low-budget travelers, for example, or a high-end luxury airline that serves the crème de la crème. You’ll impress the interviewer when you’ve shown you’ve done your research.

2. Can you tell me what you think the duties for a flight attendant are?

With this question, interviewers want to weed out applicants who overly glamorize the flight attendant role — flight attendants do so much more than serve cocktails to posh-ly dressed gentleman, despite what the movies have long depicted! Show that you know what being a flight attendant is all about: flight attendants are responsible for attending preflight briefings, checking safety equipment and demonstrating their use, directing passengers if an emergency arises, and, most importantly, taking care of passenger needs and making sure everyone feels comfortable throughout the flight.

3. Can you follow the hair and makeup guidelines?

To keep the crew looking uniform and neat, flight attendants must follow pretty strict grooming guidelines, from no visible tattoos while wearing your uniform to hair color that “compliments” your skin tone (a.k.a. no artificially bright colors). If you can’t follow guidelines like these, or are unwilling to do so, a flight attendant role on your typical airline may not be the best fit.

4. What would you do if you were faced with an unruly passenger? For example, a passenger won’t put on his seat belt.

You’ll probably encounter a few of these “what if” scenarios, since conflict resolution is such a big part of a flight attendant’s job. Other similar questions may include “What would you do if two passengers got into a dispute?” or “How would you handle seeing a passenger be rude to another flight attendant?” In your response, convey to the interviewer that you understand that you’ll need to adopt a helpful demeanor while retaining authority (that’s key!) to calmly solve the problem. If the problem seems out of your hands or the customer is becoming irate, bring the issue to your superior’s attention.

5. Tell us about a time when you had to work with someone with a difficult personality. What made this person difficult and how did you handle it?

Flight crews spend a lot of time together, so the interviewer wants to make sure you can work through any personality-clashing issues. In your response, don’t linger on describing your previous co-worker’s difficult personality (you don’t want to come off as if you’re ranting). Instead, focus on the steps you took to find a way to work together peacefully.

6. Do you speak any other languages?

Airlines serve passengers from all around the globe, so knowing a second language definitely comes in handy when you’re on board. Don’t be bashful about highlighting your bilingual or trilingual skills here.

7. Do you have direct experience in customer service?

Don’t think of this as a “yes” or “no” question. If you DO have customer service experience, briefly describe your experience for the interviewer. If you don’t have direct experience in customer service, say “no, but …” and then elaborate on how you did serve others in previous roles, even if that wasn’t the focus of your role. Pretty much every job involves some customer service!

8. Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond for a customer.

Don’t let these customer service-centric questions through you off guard. Use the STAR method — which stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result — in your response. Describe the specific situation, then describe what task you were trying to achieve (i.e. make an unhappy customer a happy one!), relay the specific actions you took, and the final result. Following this method in answering behavioral questions like this makes it easy for you to structure your response so the interviewer can easily follow along.

9. Create a PA announcement for a couple on board celebrating their 40^th wedding anniversary.

When constructing your hypothetical PA announcement, keep in mind that you want it to capture the airline’s “personality” — whether that’s fun and slightly cheeky or more formal. Again, this will show you did your homework on the airline!

10. What are your hobbies?

This may seem like a pretty innocuous question, but use it as a chance to highlight how you’re a team player, since as a flight attendant you’ll be working very closely with your flight crew. Highlight hobbies like team sports and affinity groups rather than solo activities, like reading or binging on Netflix.

Do you have any other tips on acing a flight attendant interview? Share them with us in the comments below!