Hong Kong Pacific Airways Limited held an interview here Saturday for about 1,000 candidates who applied for the post of flight attendant.

"We receive over 1,000 applications for the flight attendant post every year, and we found applicants of recent years are having higher qualities than those in the past," said cabin crew manager of Cathay Pacific Airways Shirley Au-Yeung.

Cathay Pacific Airways is offering 300 flight attendant vacancies in the second half of this year.

Au-Yeung said that among the candidates, quite a number of them were university graduates. However, the company mainly focused on the candidate's personality and language and communication ability which could tell whether a person was suitable to be a flight attendant.

Au-Yeung said that it would be an advantage if a candidate had similar work experience before. For example, a person who had worked in the service industry before would have more experience in dealing with different customers and understand more about their needs.

"The monthly salary of a flight attendant will be around 12,000to 18,000 HK dollars, depending on the working hours, which is quite attractive to a fresh graduate," said Au-Yeung.

Before becoming a flight attendant of Cathay Pacific Airways, candidates had to go through a series of tests including small group discussion, individual interview, Mandarin and English examinations etc.

After that, flight attendants to-be would have to receive a six-week emergency and safety training as well as technical and service skills training, and they can then board the flight to serve passengers.

Christie Lam, who has worked as a flight attendant for Cathay Pacific Airways for nine years, said it is very important to be enthusiastic about the job so that he or she can offer the best service to passengers.

"It is true that we may encounter some difficult passengers, but I have learnt to see every passenger as an honored guest in my home, then I will feel more comfortable to serve them," said Lam.

Source: Xinhua