Jobs and Careers Spring 2020 - 229

AV I AT I O N

deal with emergencies, administer
first aid, and demonstrate and enforce
safety procedures. With experience you
can become a purser or chief purser.
What skills and qualifications do I
need? Good GCSEs may be sufficient but
it will help if you have a degree or HND
in hospitality, languages or tourism.
You also need excellent
communication skills and
to be able to work in a
team, keep calm and defuse
tense situations quickly.
How much can I earn?
The starting salary is
£12,000 to £14,000, but
this can be boosted by
shift pay, performance
or sales bonuses.
Highly experienced cabin crew
can earn a base rate of £30,000.

Aerospace engineer
You'll research, maintain and test
aircraft, including civil or military craft,
missiles, weapon systems, satellites or
space vehicles. You'll also be involved
in assessing and improving

flight safety and fuel efficiency, and
reducing costs, as well as using advanced
technologies to improve performance.
What skills and qualifications do
I need? You can study for specific
degrees in aerospace or aeronautical
engineering, but it is also possible to get
into the profession by holding a related
degree, especially in a
subject such as maths,
software engineering and
production engineering.
How much can I earn?
Engineers typically start
with a salary of £22,000 to
£28,000, rising to £40,000
with experience. At senior
levels, you can expect to
earn more than £60,000.

Passenger check-in officer
Your main role is to check in passengers
and luggage, issuing boarding passes
and allocating seat numbers. It's
a frontline job dealing with
potentially stressed people.
What skills and
qualifications do I
need? Excellent
customer service
skills are vital.

You'll also need GCSEs (9 to 4/A* to C),
particularly in English, and being able to
speak another language will help. You'll
get on-the-job training and you can study
for an NVQ in handling air passengers.
How much can I earn? From
£13,000 to £22,000. You may
also receive a travel discount.

Air traffic controller
Traffic controllers manage aircraft
through all aspects of the flight,
in communication with pilots.
Some specialise in different stages,
such as approach controllers.
What skills and qualifications do
I need? Five GCSEs at grades 9 to 4
(A* to C) are mandatory and a degree
providing numeracy and technical skills
is a bonus. Training takes a year through
NATS (formerly National Air Traffic
Services), which stipulates you need to
be motivated, conscientious and decisive.
You'll need a further two years' hands-on
experience to become fully qualified.
How much can I earn? Salaries
start at around £13,000, rising
to £17,000 after training
and to £36,000 or more with
experience. Senior controllers
can earn more than £100,000.

Find out more
* International
Air Transport
Association iata.org
* NATS nats.aero
* Royal Aeronautical
Society aerosociety.com

JOBS & CAREERS /// 229

228 JC Spring 2020 Aviation FINAL Artwork v2.indd 229

27/05/2020 17:07
http://www.iata.org http://www.nats.aero http://www.aerosociety.com
Jobs and Careers Spring 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Jobs and Careers Spring 2020
