Aircraft Service Attendants
Service aircraft with fuel. May de-ice aircraft, refill water and cooling agents, empty sewage tanks, service air and oxygen systems, or clean and polish exterior.
Most important skills
- Active Listening
- Monitoring
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Operation and Control
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Coordination
Key knowledge
- Public Safety and Security
- English Language
- Education and Training
- Customer and Personal Service
- Transportation
- Computers and Electronics
- Mathematics
- Administration and Management
What the work involves
- Complete forms describing tasks completed.
- Guide aircraft to designated areas using hand signals, batons, or other methods.
- Radio to flight dispatchers or other personnel to discuss incoming or outgoing aircraft.
- Apply de-icing fluid to aircraft from baskets lifted by truck-mounted cranes.
- Climb ladders to reach aircraft surfaces to be cleaned.
- Empty aircraft lavatory systems or refill them with sanitizer fluid.
- Inspect aircraft components to locate cracks, breaks, leaks, or other problems.
- Load baggage or cargo for crew or passengers.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Enterprising.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) (76.6% of expert ratings)
- Related experience
- None (89.1%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months (40.9%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 2: Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Aircraft Service Attendants is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very low | Lower on contact with others than 87% of occupations compared | 57% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Moderate | Higher on dealing with the public than 51% of occupations compared | 47% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Low | Lower on teamwork than 62% of occupations compared | 65% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 98% of occupations compared | — |
| Time pressure | Very high | Higher on time pressure than 82% of occupations compared | 74% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very low | Lower on conflict situations than 95% of occupations compared | — |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Moderate | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 50% of occupations compared | 43% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Consequence of error | Very high | Higher on consequence of error than 85% of occupations compared | 58% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very high
- Conflict situations: very low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: moderate
- Consequence of error: very high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Occasional contact with others: 42.11%
- Contact with others about half the time: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Contact with others most of the time: 0.72%
- Constant contact with others: 57.17%
n = 14, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 17.41%
- Fairly important: 16.57%
- Important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very important: 1.29%
- Extremely important: 47.31%
n = 14, Incumbent 08/2026
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 17.41%
- Fairly important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Extremely important: 65.18%
n = 14, Incumbent 08/2026
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 9.69%
- Very little freedom: 10.38%
- Limited freedom: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Some freedom: 10.7%
- A lot of freedom: 5.98%
n = 13, Incumbent 08/2026
Time pressure
- Never: 8.73%
- Once a year or more but not every month: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a month or more but not every week: 17.41%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0.11%
- Every day: 73.75%
n = 14, Incumbent 08/2026
Conflict situations
- Never: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a year or more but not every month: 3.87%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 1.56%
- Once a week or more but not every day: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Every day: 1.56%
n = 13, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a year or more but not every month: 11.2%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 43.4%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 1.29%
- Every day: 18.7%
n = 14, Incumbent 08/2026
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Fairly serious: 29.9%
- Serious: 12.54%
- Very serious: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Extremely serious: 57.56%
n = 13, Incumbent 08/2026
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O*NET-SOC 53-6032.00 · SOC 53-6032 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8