Cabin Crew FAQs

World Class Cabin Crew are the higher performing crew members onboard who have previous flying experience, supporting the Customer Service Manager and, on occasions, in charge of leading our Cabin Crew and customer experience on board.

External crew with 24 months’ or more continuous flying experience, with British Airways previously or another airline. If you are currently Gatwick Cabin Crew with British Airways, unfortunately you are not eligible to apply for this role.

If you hold a valid EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA), the CCA must have been issued within the last 5 years, or if issued before this, you must have flown on at least one aircraft type.

It is not essential that you hold an EASA CCA; if you do not currently hold an EASA CCA this will be arranged for you as part of the training.

You will be rostered onto a British Airways New Entrant Cabin Crew Training course. This will be followed by a period of flying to experience British Airways aircraft. You will then join a 7 day training course (including days off) in British Airways Welcome to World Class Training course including SCCM course, including 2 days of Club World and 2 days’ training in First Class. Following this 7 days’ training, you will then fly for two more trips supernumerary with a mentor to support your learning.

The starting salary for World Class Cabin Crew is £17,343. As World Class Mixed Fleet Experienced Cabin Crew, you will have the potential to earn, on average, a reward package of between £25,000 and £29,000 per annum.

This includes an hourly payment when you are flying, bonuses for achieving your performance targets and commission for in-flight retail sales. Annual leave starts at 30 days per year rising to 34 days.

To apply, you needn’t have been a senior at your previous airline, but you will need previous customer service experience and/or experience of leading a cabin. We want highly motivated crew on the team, who have the passion and commitment to lead, motivate and inspire others, and the drive to deliver excellent customer service.

To apply, you will need 24 months’ flying experience with a previous airline and it is desirable, but not essential, that you have experience of leading a cabin. We want highly motivated Cabin Crew on the team, who have the passion and commitment to lead, motivate and inspire others, and the drive to deliver excellent customer service.

We will be assessing your suitability for the role at assessment which will draw on your flying experience. We will also validate your experience as part of your personal history check. While it’s not mandatory, if you have a valid EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA), please upload this during your application. To qualify as valid, the CCA must have been issued within the last 5 years, or if issued before this, you must have flown on at least one aircraft type.

Pre-employment checks begin on acceptance of offer.

A third-party supplier that will conduct your personal history checks, so expect a call from Procius, Security Watchdog or Carbon 60. They will talk you through the process and after the call you will be sent an email requesting that you complete your online profile within 3 days. (Please check your spam file to ensure you do not miss the email. If you don’t respond within 3 days. we will assume you are no longer interested and will withdraw your application. You will need to provide all referee details.)

The criminal record check (CRC) typically takes about 2 weeks, the 5 year pre-employment vetting will take longer. Normally, we would expect to have these checks completed within 16 weeks. You will be contacted at 3, 6 and 12 weeks to keep you up to date. Please provide accurate and in-depth information as any discrepancies will cause delays and may result in any potential offer being withdrawn.

You will need to provide us with the names and/or companies that can supply us with 5 years’ employment history, education and any gaps of over 28 days.

If, during the last 5 years you have been lucky enough to live overseas for 6 months or more, we will require a CRC from that country too. The cost of CRCs globally varies considerably, as do the timescales and application process for obtaining a CRC between countries. (If an Overseas Criminal Record Certificate is over 10 weeks old but you have not returned to the country of issue it is valid; if you have returned to the country of issue during this period it will be invalid.)

It is essential that you understand the importance of full disclosure. These checks are commonly used to verify the accuracy of your application, so please remember to include all of your jobs, even the ones you would rather forget!

Failure to submit accurate information will lead to delays and may result in any potential offer of employment being withdrawn.

You should allow yourself plenty of time – it takes around 40 minutes to complete if you’ve prepared your answers in advance.

You can re-apply for the CSM role after 6 months.

Assessment activities are scheduled for approximately five hours. Please allow yourself a full day for your Assessment Centre.

The Assessment Centre is designed to provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your motivation, skills and behaviours in relation to the roles in our Heathrow and Gatwick fleets. It comprises a series of events including an interview, individual role-plays and a group exercise.

As a CSM, you’ll spend the majority of your time flying, inspiring your cabin crew to be outstanding. However, as a crucial part of the Fleet Management team, you’ll have a unique opportunity to set the standards on which the fleet is built. In order to do this, you’ll be required to spend some days each month working on the ground with your line manager on people management team activities and initiatives.

The Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA) is a record of completion of Initial Safety Training to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) regulations. The competent authority or the airline on the authority’s behalf must issue each Cabin Crew member with a CCA once training is complete. The CCA must conform to a standard specification which will look like this:

• Your Attestation will be checked and forms part of the role’s essential criteria. If you are unable to provide this, you will need to apply via our other Cabin Crew campaign
• The CCA must have all 12 fields; fields 2 to 11 must be populated. If not, contact your issuing competent authority or airline
• There is no need for the CCA to contain the “EASA Form 142 Issue 1”. However, it does require all 12 numbered items
• We can only accept Attestations from UK Cabin Crew Training Organisations (CCTOs) and EU member state airlines
• If you have flown for an EASA member airline, or attended a Cabin Crew Initial course with a UK CCTO, they are responsible for issuing your Cabin Crew Attestation. You will need to contact them and ask for this if you do not have an original physical copy that you can upload during your application and bring with you to assessment. No other form of documentation is appropriate
• If you cannot read some of the detail on your Attestation, please contact the issuer. The CCA does not prove that you have operated and performed your duties as Cabin Crew onboard an aircraft

The EASA Attestation must follow the format as stated above. If it does, but it was issued more than 5 years ago, you can also provide a list of qualifications to show that you have operated as crew in the last 5 years. This will show us the aircraft type you have operated on and qualification period/validity. The required format is illustrated below; all fields must be completed. You will also need to provide us with copies of these at application and assessment if applicable.

If you have obtained a CCA but have no flying experience, as long as the Attestation was issued within the last 5 years, this is valid If your CCA was issued more than 5 years ago, you will need to provide evidence of flying experience. A list of qualifications is evidence that you have operated as Cabin Crew.

Safety and Security are core to our operation and integral to the Cabin Crew role. Therefore, it is important to know that we take referencing very seriously. It is thorough – very thorough!

Because the pre-employment vetting checks are rigorous and in-depth, the process can be quite protracted, especially if you do not provide accurate and in-depth information. To comply with airport regulations you cannot fly until the vetting procedure is complete. Don’t worry, we will talk you through what you need to know!

If you are successful at the Assessment Centre, you will be asked to apply for a criminal record check (CRC). In common with many other employers, we ask you to apply and pay for it directly (the cost is £25.) If during the last 5 years you have been lucky enough to live overseas for 6 months or more, we will require a CRC from that country too. The cost of CRCs varies considerably globally. The timescales and application process for obtaining CRCs also vary significantly between countries. (If an overseas CRC is over 10 weeks old but you have not returned to the country of issue it is valid; if you have returned to the country of issue during this period it will be invalid.)

Before you can be given unescorted access to high security areas of the airport, we must also complete 5 years of pre-employment vetting in the form of references.

You will need to provide us with names and/or companies that can supply us with 5 years’ employment history, education and any gaps of over 28 days.

The CRC typically takes about 2 weeks, the 5-year pre-employment vetting will take longer. Normally, we would expect to have these checks completed within 16 weeks.

It is essential that you understand the importance of full disclosure. These checks are commonly used to verify the accuracy of your application, so please remember to include all of your jobs, even the ones you would rather forget!

To apply for this role you must have the right to live and work in the UK at the time of application; documents will be checked at the assessment and if you do not have the right to live and work in the UK, we will unfortunately have to withdraw your application from the recruitment process. We are unable to employ anyone who does not have the legal right to work in the UK. We do not offer migrant sponsorship for this role

We are only recruiting for permanent, full time positions.

You should only apply for one role at your preferred location, either Heathrow, Gatwick or London City. If you submit more than one application, we will not be able to progress your application until you have withdrawn any other current Cabin Crew applications.

We are unable to reimburse any travel expenses.

Yes - our assessment centres are held virtually, from the comfort of your own home. It’s a great opportunity to find out more about what it’s like to be British Airways Cabin Crew.

As a reminder, to apply for this role you must have the right to live and work in the UK at the time of application; documents will be checked at the assessment and if you do not have the right to live and work in the UK, we will unfortunately have to withdraw your application from the recruitment process. We are unable to employ anyone who does not have the legal right to work in the UK. We do not offer migrant sponsorship for this role.

Details will be provided if you are invited to our assessment day.

If you are booked onto an assessment, then you must attend on this date. If you do not show up for you assessment, and you have not been in contact with us before this date, we will withdraw your application from the process. You will be able to re-apply after 6 months.

We will contact you with your assessment outcome within 5-7 days of attending your assessment.

You can re-apply for the Cabin Crew role in 6 months’ time.

If you are successful in your assessment, we will notify you via email with a provisional start date. Once you accept this, your offer and contract will be available via the portal. Once you have accepted and signed your contract, please complete the additional information requested. We will then begin your personal history check. A third-party company will conduct the checks on our behalf, and you will be sent a link to provide your pre-employment history.

You will have 7 days to register your information; if you do not register within 7 days, we will withdraw your application. You will be asked to provide comprehensive history for the last 5 years in both the UK and overseas, which includes employment, education and any gaps of over 28 days. You will be provided with details on how to obtain your criminal record check (CRC) required for cabin crew roles.

Once your personal history check is complete, you have been cleared medically and you have completed the required steps, you will be ready to attend the Cabin Crew New Entrant Training.

Annual leave cannot be taken during your New Entrant Training. You can request leave once you join for any pre-booked holidays within the first few months of employment; however, this is not guaranteed to be granted and there may be times when we are unable to grant the requested leave, especially around school and bank holiday periods. We will require evidence of a holiday booking made before the date of your assessment day although the requested leave is still not guaranteed. Any annual leave required to cover a holiday would be deducted from your annual leave entitlement. Our holiday year runs from April to March and you would only be entitled to annual leave pro rata for the duration of your employment for that year with a maximum of 14 days to be taken between April and September. Any requests that fall outside the current holiday year will need to be made in the appropriate holiday year.

BA CityFlyer training lasts 30-32 days including days off. All training schedules may fall over weekends and days off will be varied.

Training will take place at British Airways London City, City Aviation House, London City Airport. You may be required travel to other training facilities to undertake parts of the course.

A typical roster pattern can vary from 2 to 5 sectors (flights) per day. Our Cabin Crew also night-stop in many of our destinations and can often be away from home for anything up to 5 days. Each month, you have the opportunity to submit a request for certain days off or particular flights, although these cannot always be guaranteed. Rosters are published monthly, approximately 3 weeks in advance.

BACF currently operate a fleet of 76-seat Embraer 170s and 98-seat Embraer 190SR.

BA CityFlyer serve a variety of business and leisure destinations in Europe out of London City Airport.

A Cabin Crew role involves many manual tasks, including reaching overhead lockers and opening aircraft doors. Our functionality check ensures you’ll be able to complete these tasks.

You need to be of a required height, maximum of 2.01m, and have a vertical function reach of at least 2.01m. In order to be able to meet the reach requirement you likely need to be at least 1.575m in height.

We will measure your diagonal reach, as this is used to manually release an evacuation slide in an emergency. You’ll be asked to hold a handle with your right hand and reach down to touch a tag on the floor with your left. Your right arm will be at about 2 o’clock and your left arm at around 7 o’clock. You’ll squat a little to do this, so ensure your clothes allow you room to bend.

Please note - any offer of employment is conditional upon completion of the Functionality Check. If you are unable to complete the check, unfortunately your offer of employment will be withdrawn.

British Airways uniform policy requires that tattoos must never be visible outside the uniform.

As a guide, areas shown in grey on this diagram will not be covered by our uniform (when wearing a short-sleeved shirt). No tattoos must be visible on the face, hands, neck or arms. Additionally, as all our uniform shirts are white, you will be required to wear an appropriate white undergarment if you have a tattoo on your upper body in the blue area, so that your tattoo is in no way visible through the uniform shirt. Any tattoos in the red area must be covered.

Please note that covering tattoos with plasters, jewellery or watches in the grey areas is not permitted and it will remain your personal responsibility that tattoos are never visible when in uniform.

You will be eligible for the Cabin Crew Apprenticeship if:
You do not hold a Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA);
You have not flown as Cabin Crew before.

We’re afraid not. The apprenticeship is open to applicants who have not flown as Cabin Crew before and do not hold a Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA). Please apply for our experienced Cabin Crew opportunities at Heathrow or Gatwick - you could still become a valued member of the team.

As part of your learning journey, you will need to undertake an assessment in functional skills to gain level 2 qualifications in English and Maths (if you do not already have them). However, you will not need to complete the functional skills qualifications if you can provide original certificates for any of the following:

• Level 2 Functional Skills qualification in English and/ or Mathematics
• 4 or C grade GCSE (or international GCSE) qualification in either English, English Literature, English Language, or English Language and Literature and/or Mathematics, Linear Maths, Modular Maths, Application of Maths, Methods in Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Mathematics – Numeracy, or Use of Mathematics
• E grade A’ Level or AS Level qualification in either English Language, English Literature or English Language and Literature and/or Mathematics, Pure Mathematics, Further Mathematics or Use of Mathematics
• C grade O’ Level qualification in either English Literature or English Language and/ or Mathematics
• Level 2 in Essential Skills Wales or Northern Ireland in Essential Application of Number Skills
• Level 2 Essential Skills Wales or Northern Ireland in Essential Communication Skills
• C grade Scottish Intermediate 2 in English and/or Mathematics, Scottish National 5 in English and/or Mathematics or Grade 3 Scottish Standard Grade Credit in English and/or Mathematics

If you have lost your certificates, you can request a ‘certified statement of results’, which is acceptable evidence of your grades/qualifications. Find out more here https://www.gov.uk/replacement-exam-certificate

You will be supported with appropriate Functional Skills training, online, in the classroom and on the job to assist in your development to attain Level 2 qualification in Maths. We will support

The British Airways Cabin Crew Apprenticeship is a fantastic opportunity for you to not only join British Airways as Cabin Crew, but to gain a recognised qualification as part of your new role. The programme provides you with dedicated mentoring and continued support, enabling you to improve your functional skills alongside achieving a Level 3 Apprenticeship over the course of your first 12 months with us.

Whilst on a 12.5 month Cabin Crew Apprenticeship programme our Coaches, who are our subject matter experts, will engage with our Apprentices in meaningful ways. You’ll have touchpoints with your Coaches throughout the 12.5 month programme. They will provide any additional support, such as additional functional skills tuition. Our Coaches are committed to your continuous personal development and collaborate with our Customer Service Managers (CSM’s) and Inflight Business Managers (IBM’s) to promote effective communication, engagement and knowledge sharing. Supporting you inside and outside of the workplace.

You will be offered permanent employment with British Airways if you are successful at your assessment. Unlike many Apprenticeships, our programme runs in conjunction with regular employment in the role of Cabin Crew. After the 12 months have passed, you will continue with your employment as per normal.

A: We expect all new entrant Cabin Crew to naturally have a period of time to settle in after initial training. Roughly one month after starting flying, all new Cabin Crew colleagues come back on the ground to add to their learning for a ‘Welcome to fleet day’ at your base, either Gatwick or Heathrow. In your first 12 months you will be in your probation period and we want you to feel supported from day one and we want to set you up for success. British Airways is a fast paced global business and our customers have the highest expectations of us. We expect you to:

• Maintain excellent attendance & punctuality for all duties, showing willingness and flexibility
• Revising and being up to date on all safety and service standards
• Demonstrating the highest standards of service to our customers whilst maintaining excellent uniform standards
• Working towards your New Entrant 0-12 months objectives and keeping in touch with your manager proactively
• Obtaining feedback through monthly onboard assessments and demonstrating progress against goals and objectives
• Keeping up to date with the requirements of the Cabin Crew Apprenticeship Programme

All of our cabin crew are required to have literacy and numeracy skills to communicate effectively within the role they do and the wider business. Therefore, on the apprenticeship programme if you do not already hold the required Maths and English GCSE qualifications grades A* - C (4-9) or equivalent, we will support you to achieve these before the end of your program through structured learning events. The functional skills assessment will enable us to structure your learning programme.

To apply for this role you must have the right to live and work in the UK at the time of application; documents will be checked at the assessment and if you do not have the right to live and work in the UK, we will unfortunately have to withdraw your application from the recruitment process. We are unable to employ anyone who does not have the legal right to work in the UK. We do not offer migrant sponsorship for this role.

We are only recruiting for permanent, full time positions.

You should only apply for one role at your preferred location, either Heathrow, Gatwick or London City. If you submit more than one application, we will not be able to progress with your application until you have withdrawn any other current Cabin Crew applications.

We are unable to reimburse any travel expenses.

All assessments for these roles take place at our Recruitment Centre at our Head Office (5 minutes from London Heathrow Airport.) We cannot offer Skype interviews, or overseas assessments for these roles.

Please do all you can to attend on the assessment date you have selected. If you do not show up for your assessment, and you have not been in contact with us, we may withdraw your application from the process. You will be able to re-apply after 6 months.

We will contact you with your assessment outcome within 5-7 days of attending your assessment.

You can re-apply for the Cabin Crew role in 6 months’ time.

If you are successful in your assessment, we will notify you via email with a provisional start date. Once you accept this, your offer and contract will be available via the portal. Once you have accepted and signed your contract, please complete the additional information requested. We will then begin your personal history check. A third-party company will conduct the checks on our behalf, and you will be sent a link to provide your pre-employment history.

You will have 7 days to register your information; if you do not register within 7 days, we will withdraw your application. You will be asked to provide comprehensive history for the last 5 years in both the UK and overseas, which includes employment, education and any gaps of over 28 days. You will be provided with details on how to obtain your criminal record check (CRC) required for cabin crew roles.

Once your personal history check is complete, you have been cleared medically and you have completed the required steps, you will be ready to attend the Cabin Crew New Entrant Training.

British Airways uniform policy requires that tattoos must never be visible outside the uniform.
As a guide, areas shown in grey on this diagram will not be covered by our uniform (when wearing a short-sleeved shirt). No tattoos must be visible on the face, hands, neck or arms. Additionally, as all our uniform shirts are white, you will be required to wear an appropriate white undergarment if you have a tattoo on your upper body in the blue area, so that your tattoo is in no way visible through the uniform shirt. Any tattoos in the red area must be covered.
Please note that covering tattoos with plasters, jewellery or watches in the grey areas is not permitted and it will remain your personal responsibility that tattoos are never visible when in uniform.

Our uniform standards require a simple, elegant look. A single ear piercing is allowed no more than 10mm in diameter, only one set of round shaped ear-rings must be worn. No other visible body piercings including tongue, tongue retainer and nose studs are allowed.

Our uniform standards require a groomed look that meets a conventional standard. Women need to have a styled look, with hair and makeup that would be appropriate in a professional environment and complements our uniform. Men’s hair must meet a conventional style which is appropriate for a professional environment; shaven or sculptured styles and long hair are not permitted. Dyed hair must be of a natural colour for both men and women.

Pre-employment checks begin on acceptance of the employment offer.

A third-party supplier will conduct your personal history checks – so expect a call from one of the following: Procius, Security Watchdog or Carbon 60. They will talk you through the process and after the call you will be sent an email requesting that you complete your online profile within 3 days. (Please check your spam file to ensure you do not miss the email. If you don’t respond within 3 days we will assume you are no longer interested and will withdraw your application. You will need to provide all referee details.)

The criminal record check (CRC) typically takes about 2 weeks, the 5 year pre-employment vetting will take longer. Normally, we would expect to have these checks completed within 16 weeks. You will be contacted at 3, 6 and 12 weeks to keep you up to date. Please provide accurate and in-depth information as any discrepancies will cause delays and may result in any potential offer being withdrawn.

You will need to provide us with the names and/or companies that can supply us with 5 years’ employment history, education and any gaps of over 28 days.

If during the last 5 years you have been lucky enough to live overseas for 6 months or more, we will require a CRC from that country too. The cost of CRCs varies considerably globally. The timescales and application process for obtaining CRCs also vary significantly between countries. (If an Overseas Criminal Record Certificate is over 10 weeks old but you have not returned to the country of issue it is valid; if you have returned to the country of issue during this period it will be invalid.)

It is essential that you understand the importance of full disclosure. These checks are commonly used to verify the accuracy of your application, so please remember to include all of your jobs, even the ones you would rather forget!

Failure to submit accurate information will lead to delays and may result in any potential offer of employment being withdrawn.