What is a Corporate Flight Attendant?

A corporate flight attendant is a flight attendant who provides services on noncommercial aircraft such as corporate jets and charter planes. Like other flight attendants, corporate flight attendants are concerned with the safety and comfort of their passengers, but they also perform a range of specialty services unique to private aviation. Some people in corporate or business flight attendant careers start out in the commercial aviation industry and later transition, while others specifically receive training to qualify as corporate attendants so that they can start work in this field immediately.

In some cases, using a flight attendant may be required by law. On smaller private flights, this member of the crew is not required, but can be very useful, because the pilot and copilot need to focus on flying, and cannot provide passenger services. The corporate flight attendant helps to prepare the plane for takeoff, handles clients while they are aboard, and prepares the plane for the next flight once the clients have reached their destination.

Corporate flight attendants handle luggage, food service, and seating just like regular flight attendants, but they also provide more personalized services. International companies may retain bilingual attendants who can provide services to diverse clients, and cultural training may also be provided so that flight attendants feel comfortable with people from a wide range of cultures and religions. A corporate flight attendant might, for example, don hijab to serve Muslim clients, or observe formal etiquette when working with Japanese clients.

Although flight attendants are not technically public relations professionals, they are part of the overall image of the companies that they work for. When a company sends a plane to pick up clients, the corporate flight attendant may provide the first face to face interaction with the company for the client, and he or she may make or break a deal with service. A good corporate flight attendant is flexible, friendly, and highly attentive to the needs of passengers.

Some private flight attendant jobs take the form of fill in work, with a flight attendant registering which an agency which provides placement services. Others may be attached to a particular aircraft as part of the plane's regular staff, or be among the air crew used by a specific aviation company or private corporation which provides air travel to its clients and staff. Pay for the staff who work on a private plane tends to be better than for those working in commercial aviation, especially if staffers have years of experience and specialized training which can include the quality of their service.