Initial training
The four-to-eight-week course that turns a successful candidate into a licensed, type-qualified cabin crew member.
Definition
Initial training is the airline's new-entrant course, typically four to eight weeks, covering SEP for the aircraft type, first aid, dangerous goods, security, CRM, service and grooming. Under EASA it leads to the cabin crew attestation; the FAA requires an airline-specific programme and issues a certificate of demonstrated proficiency. It ends with written exams and practical drills, and one failed module can end the job before it starts.
What it means for you
Initial training is intense, examined and usually residential, and how it is paid is a real differentiator between airlines: some pay a full salary from day one, some pay a stipend, and some charge for it or bond you. Expect long days, a pass mark around 80-90%, and the first real test of whether you can memorise and perform under pressure.
In practice
Riyadh Air pays full salary during training, IndiGo pays a stipend of roughly ₹12,000-15,000, and many Ryanair agency contracts charge or bond the six-week course.
Go deeper
Related terms
4 terms- SEPSafety & trainingSafety and Emergency Procedures — the core safety syllabus every cabin crew member is trained and re-examined on.
- Training bondPay & benefitsA contract clause that makes you repay some or all of your initial training cost if you leave the airline within a set period.
- Cabin crew attestationRecruitmentThe EASA Cabin Crew Attestation (CCA): proof you have completed approved initial safety training, required to fly for any EU airline.
- Training centreRecruitmentThe airline's facility with door and slide trainers, cabin mock-ups, fire and pool rigs where initial and recurrent training take place.