Flight Attendant Certification Information – 03.10

FLIGHT ATTENDANT CERTIFICATION.

Flight attendant unions have been pursuing certification for over 30 years. In the mid ’80’s, the unions came together as the Coalition of Flight Attendant Unions and agreed that certification was too big a chunk to bite off at one time — the FAA and Congress had refused to agree to certification and all of its component parts.prior to that time. The Coalition decided to work on flight attendant duty and rest limits with the understanding that it is one element of certification. Consequently, the Coalition pursued and achieved duty and rest limits. APFA pursued certification last year looking at it as a stepping stone. By limiting the provisions of certification, we were able to circumvent the need for a physical exam as required in pilot licensing. No additional health requirements are attached to certification.

One of our biggest barriers to certification has been the FAA’s complaint for many years that it did not have the wherewithal to handle the record keeping for flight attendant certification. We overcame that hurdle with the passage of last year’s language. The provision also states that the FAA is responsible for the approval of flight attendant training programs. While this was previously the case through regulations, the force of law gives it more weight. In addition, a person must be assigned by each carrier who is responsible for flight attendants completing their training. A single person rather than the nebulous carrier will be held accountable.

Most importantly, certification places the flight attendant position on par with other aviation workgroups (pilots, mechanics, etc.). We can continue to build on this to improve flight attendant training and other areas of the job.