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By Maureen StimolaMAUREEN STIMOLA

Last updated: SEPTEMBER 27, 2023

English for Flight Attendants: 60+ Words and Phrases You Should Know [with Audio]

As a flight attendant, you get to travel all over the world and meet people from various countries—many
of them English speakers.

In order to communicate with these passengers, you will need to know some key words and phrases.

In this post, you will learn over 60 English terms that you can use on airplanes and in airports to succeed
at your job.

By reviewing these terms, you will feel more comfortable and confident in your English skills wherever
you go.

Contents

Navigating the Airport

Getting On Board

Types of tickets

Knowing the Plane

Air traffic control

Giving Safety Instructions

Serving Passengers

Food and drinks

Items

Documents and information

Keeping Order on the Plane

Handling Medical Emergencies

Practicing English Pronunciation

And One More Thing...

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click
here to get a copy. (Download)

Navigating the Airport

This is the essential vocabulary you need to know about the airport:

airline — An airline is a company that owns airplanes. Some examples are American Airlines, Delta
Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Emirates.

airfare — Airfare is the price of a plane ticket.

flights — A flight is a trip made on an airplane between two places.

layover — A layover is when passengers must get off one plane and get on another plane in order to
reach their final destination. Layovers can be just minutes, hours or even days!

terminal — A terminal is a large building where passengers get on and off flights. Large airports may
have multiple terminals, often labeled with letters. Small airports only have one terminal.

gate — The gate is where passengers sit and wait to board their flight. Every flight leaves from a gate,
and they are usually numbered. The gate is also where the flight attendants will check passengers’
documents and help them get on the plane.

runway / tarmac — The place where planes take off, land and travel to and from the gates. This surface
is typically made of asphalt or concrete.

arrivals — Arrivals are flights that are arriving at the airport. There is an arrivals board that shows
which flights are arriving and at what times.

departures — Departures are flights that are leaving the airport. There is a departures board (usually
right next to the arrivals board) that shows which flights are leaving and at what times.

on time — When a plane is on time, it will arrive or depart at the scheduled (planned) time.

delayed — When a flight is delayed, it will take longer to arrive or depart than planned.
canceled — Canceled flights are flights that are not going to happen. Passengers will need to find
different flights to their destinations. Canceled flights usually appear in red on the arrivals and
departures boards, so that passengers can easily see them.

check-in — Check-in is where passengers must show their travel documents (such as passports and
visas) to airline employees. The airline employees will make sure they have the right documents to
travel, and they will prepare the passengers’ suitcases to be put on the plane.

boarding — A flight is boarding when passengers are getting on the airplane.

lost and found — When people lose items in the airport, they may be brought to the lost and found.
People can then go there to find an item that they lost.

luggage storage / baggage storage — Travelers may want to leave their suitcases somewhere so that
they can exit the airport. This is common when passengers have long layovers and want to see the city
they are waiting in until their next flight leaves.

These are the most important words for the airport. You can find more vocabulary related to airports
and flights here.

Getting On Board

A very important part of being a flight attendant is helping passengers get onto the airplane. Here is
some important vocabulary about tickets, seating and helping passengers board the plane.

rows — A row is a line of seats that goes from one side of the plane to the other. These rows are
numbered, starting with row 1 at the front of the plane. Passengers usually must board the plane by
group number, which is based on the row where they will be sitting.

window seats — Window seats are located next to the plane’s windows, on the sides of the plane. The
window seats on the left side of the plane are labeled with the letter A. The next column of seats is
labeled B, then C and so on.

aisle seats — The aisle is the hallway where people can walk from the front to the back of the plane.
Aisle seats are the seats closest to the aisle.

exit row — The exit row is the row of seats near the emergency exit. You will need to make sure that
strong, healthy people sit in these rows so that if there is an emergency, they can open the emergency
exit door. Elderly people and children should not sit in this row.

standard — Standard seats are normal seats that have no restrictions or special services (such as extra
space).
bulkhead — Bulkhead seats offer more leg room (extra space where passengers can stretch out their
legs and be more comfortable). There are not many of these seats on a plane.

Types of tickets

First Class — The first rows of the plane are First Class seats, which are usually bigger and more
comfortable with more space between rows. First Class passengers may receive special services while on
the flight and get to board the plane first. For these reasons, First Class seats are more expensive.

Business Class — Seats in Business Class have fewer special services and benefits than First Class, but
they are better than economy seating (see below for definition). Business Class seats are usually a little
less expensive than First Class seats.

Economy Class — Economy Class seating is where most passengers will sit. These tickets are less
expensive than First and Business Class. This is also known as coach seating .

Knowing the Plane

During your flight attendant training, you will be tested on your understanding of planes and their parts.
You will also need to be able to communicate with airline and airport employees who may use technical
vocabulary to talk about the plane.

Here are some key words to learn:

jetbridge / jetway — This is a movable bridge that looks like a long hallway. It connects an airplane to
the terminal and allows passengers and airline employees to board the plane. Other names for it include
skybridge , airbridge and boarding bridge .

airstairs — These are mobile (movable) stairs that connect the airplane doors to the runway. When you
board and deboard a plane using airstairs instead of a jetbridge, you will sometimes take a shuttle (a
small bus) between the terminal and the plane so you do not have to walk on the runway.

fuselage — This is the main part of the airplane, where passengers sit and where luggage/baggage is
stored.

passenger cabin — This is the section of the airplane where all the passengers sit.

cockpit — This is where the pilot (the person flying the plane) and the co-pilot (someone who assists
the pilot) sit and control the plane. Passengers are never allowed in the cockpit.

freight hold / cargo hold — This is where all the luggage/baggage is stored for the passengers.

overhead compartment/bin — This is the place on the plane where passengers store their carry-on
luggage and other personal items during the flight. Flight attendants usually assist by closing the
overhead compartments once they are full.

Air traffic control

Air traffic controllers are the people at the airport who give pilots instructions for take-off, flight and
landing. They work in the radio control tower and ensure the safe and efficient movement of aircraft in
the airspace.

While communicating with air traffic control is the pilot’s job, on rare occasions you may need to
understand and communicate with them. This means you will need to know the special, technical
language that is used by air traffic control known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet .

This alphabet is used to spell out important words on a radio so that nobody misunderstands or
miscommunicates. You can practice listening to air traffic control at international airports here.

Giving Safety Instructions