W Orking In airports

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What is Connexions?
Something for every 13-19 year old.
Connexions is a new youth service providing
advice, guidance, support and personal
development services for all 13-19 year olds.
Through Connexions Partnerships it brings
together all the services that help young people
and gives young people access to a Personal
Adviser, someone they can trust.
Connexions is an innovative and exciting
development in the world of young people’s
services. It’s about helping young people
navigate their way through decisions about
studying, jobs and careers. Through youth
work it’s about helping young people get the
personal development opportunities they need
to fulfil their potential and become the active
citizens of tomorrow. It’s also about helping
those who have problems with drugs, alcohol,
depression, are homeless or at risk of becoming
homeless.
Connexions is for all young people helping
them to make decisions about their future.
One of the cornerstones of the Service is its
staff: well-qualified, passionate and enthusiastic
practitioners, known as Personal Advisers
(PAs). Their role is to offer the young person
appropriate information and guidance. They
help smooth a young person’s path through
difficult choices and understand what’s on offer.
Careers Information and the
W orking In Series
In order to make informed career decisions,
young people need to be able to access good
quality information about careers, education and
learning. That information must be accurate, up
to date and impartial. It also needs to challenge
stereotypical images and views where these
persist. These are some of the guiding
principles which inform production of the
Working In series.
This well-established and popular set of books
is aimed primarily at young people aged 13+
and they are recommended for inclusion in
school and college careers libraries.
Appropriate professional organisations are
consulted to advise on content and to ensure
that the books provide accurate information.
However, qualifications and entry requirements
change over time and readers should always
check with other sources of information for the
most up-to-date position.
Contents
Introduction 2
Arriving at the
Airport 3
Car Parks & Car Hire 3
Information Desk Assistant 3
Terminal Duty Manager 5
Catering, Retail & Cleaning 7
Airport Engineering Technician 7
Checking In 9
Passenger Service Agent 9
Aviation Security Officer 11
Baggage Handling 12
Preparing To Fly 13
Duty Operations Manager 13
Crew Scheduling Officer 15
Crew Co-ordinator 17
Pilots & Cabin Crew 18
Aircraft Dispatcher 19
Take-off 21
Air Traffic Controller 21
Airfield Operations 22
Touchdown 23
Immigration Officer 23
Detection Officer (Customs) 25
Aircraft Engineer 27
Further Information 29
Useful Addresses 29
Working in
Airports
To give you an idea of the types of careers available, we take
you on a tour around Manchester Airport, which employs around
19,000 people. We meet just a few of the staff who contribute to
the safe and smooth running of one of the UK’s busiest airports.
By 2005 some 24 million people are expected to fly from and
into Manchester. As worldwide air travel continues to increase,
most airports expect passenger numbers to increase significantly
over the next 10 years. This means there will be even more job
opportunities.
If you think you might be interested in working at an airport,
you might like to consider the following:
● an airport is open 24 hours a day 365 days a year so shift
work is common. There can be some very early starts –
4 or 5 a.m. is not unusual!
● many jobs involve dealing with the public so customer
service skills are essential.
● airports are busy places to work, particularly during peak
holiday periods, and some jobs can be stressful.
Who works at an airport? If you think it’s mainly
pilots and cabin crew – then think again!
Large airports are a bit like mini-cities. Consider all the different companies and facilities
that exist in a city and then think of all the people that work there. You’ll find that there’s
probably an equivalent job in an airport. For example, did you know that there are
opportunities for chefs, engineers, shop assistants, information officers, firefighters and
car park attendants?
● thousands of passengers who are not fluent in English
arrive in Manchester each day – so foreign language skills
are an advantage when applying for some posts.
● for all jobs applicants will need to pass security clearance.
A large airport is not a single organisation; it is made up of lots
of companies, some employing hundreds of staff, some with just
two or three. The biggest employers are usually the airlines, who
are responsible for transporting passengers to their destinations.
Handling agents, who look after check-in and baggage handling,
also employ large numbers of people; as do catering companies,
who provide in-flight meals and run the airport’s cafes and
restaurants. Control agencies - Air Traffic Control, Police, HM
Customs and Excise, and Immigration are also not far behind in
terms of number of people employed.
Note: Salary information can be found in Occupations
produced by Connexions. Also available on the web at
www.connexions.gov.uk/occupations/
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