Why VVIP and What’s the Difference?
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At times the job of a Corporate Flight Attendant can be quite spectacular, but to do it, it takes a lot more than just good service and a smile. Starting a career as a Corporate Flight Attendant is rewarding, but there can be challenges. A good preliminary training program can help send you on your way, but be warned you may encounter some misinformation. In order to find what you're looking for and the right place for you, it is important to discern between what you're told is required to work as a CFA, and what the actual requirements for a CFA to have the ability to fly and find employment really are.
Debunking the Accreditation Myth:
Just so that we are clear, there are no accredited training schools for Corporate Flight Attendants. That’s right! There are no FAA accredited training schools for Corporate Flight Attendants. Yes, that means that VVIP is not accredited, and that is because none of the schools are. The FAA does not require accreditation from training programs who train CFA’s. To clarify further, the FAA has no required certification for CFA’s because by FAA definition a Corporate Flight Attendant works on an aircraft with less than 20 passengers. The Federal Aviation Regulations for Business and Corporate Flight Attendants are different from those of Flight Attendants flying on commercial aircraft with large numbers of passengers. What you are looking for as a prospective trainee is a program where the curriculum adheres to FAA best practices and guidelines for CFA’s not FA’s.
Why VVIP International?
VVIP is among many schools in the industry today that offer training to become Corporate Flight Attendants in the private industry of aviation. We created a new standard of training for Corporate Flight Attendants that distinguishes us from the rest. Yes, there are schools that offer a training similar to ours, but all curriculums are different and so are the packages being offered at various schools. Some give priority to in-flight safety, while others focus on in-flight service only, and at VVIP we focus on it all while giving our students an all inclusive, hands-on experience program. Conducted at a private FBO, on private jets, and for some the privilege of a demo flight with our instructors.
Our curriculum was created by leading Corporate Aviation Flight Attendants with a combined experience of over 20 years. Iris Christmann and Lauren Pires have both been in the private aviation industry for many years. Together they combined their knowledge to create a unique experience that brings together the very best of the European training style for Corporate Flight Attendants, and the training style that is offered here in the US. They have both experienced and completed many, if not all, of the training programs offered for CFA’s between the US and the UK. Iris and Lauren are lead CFA’s in the industry, and when it comes to learning and participating in a top notch training what you’re looking for and what you want is experience. They have it!
Iris comes from Germany and has worked and traveled throughout the world. She is a highly experienced CFA with well over 20 years of experience in the industry, both as a CFA and as an instructor. She demonstrates aptitude and an array of knowledge as a Corporate Flight Attendant, which she shares with students who take the VVIP training. Iris has flown with diplomats and royalty and is exemplary with teaching the cultural aspect of the industry to our students, which can be very beneficial for a CFA looking to work overseas and across borders with people of various nationalities and cultural backgrounds.
Lauren is the CEO of VVIP and a US based CFA who has worked and trained in both the UK and the US. In fact, that is how she and Iris came together. Like Iris, Lauren has accumulated many years of flying and providing instruction to future CFA’s. Lauren has worked as a Corporate Flight Attendant for Sandals, JetReady, Vista Jet, Delta Private Jets and Carnival Cruise’s private aircraft. She has also managed aircraft for undisclosed political figures, top musicians, and many other actors and actresses. She is an exemplary CFA whose reputation for in-flight service and hospitality supersedes her and led her to wanting to share her knowledge and experience with future CFA’s by means of a professional training.
With VVIP International That’s Not All You Get!
We have many experienced professionals on our staff to train and support students who take our training. One of the most talked about aspects of our training is that VVIP trainees are given an on-jet experience with Stewart Pulley, Chief Pilot and Professor of Aeronautics. Stewart really employs the best of everything at VVIP, and he gives our trainees the advantage of the knowledge and experience he’s attained from many levels of the aviation industry. Stewart has worked in general, commercial, and military aviation, and he’s done everything from maintenance to administration, education, and operations.
With our Corporate Flight Attendants Training Program students are provided the opportunity to learn from some of the best in the industry to date. To ensure that our students receive the best in-flight safety training that meets safety requirements for Corporate Aviation, we brought in specialists Mark Baker and Marc E. Coney. They bring the necessary elements to the VVIP training, so that all who complete it will not only be in compliance with regulations, but also feel the confidence needed to perform their jobs as CFA’s and take flight. Both Baker and Coney have extensive US Military backgrounds and have worked in Fire and Rescue, but at VVIP it gets even better! Joining Baker and Coney for the safety segment of our training is Jose Landrua, our Aquatics Coordinator. Jose (Tony), who conducts the VVIP Water Ditching and Survival Training part of the course, which has been an unforgettable experience to our students, and a key hiring factor for them as well.
What’s the VVIP Difference?
We feel there are many things that set us apart from other training schools, but what stands out to our students most is how our course covers several different training components that aren't usually offered all in one place, and all in one training. We believe in the aviation industry and that all training and experience is an advantage, and we encourage our students to get all the training and experience they can. Our main objective since the inception of VVIP International and our Corporate Flight Attendants Training has been to share our knowledge of the sky, and what we, as CFA’s, have learned, found useful, and found rewarding to our careers.
You can find our full list of offerings on our website, but here’s some of what you get with the VVIP International Experience:
U.S. and European Standards
Safe Food Handling, Safe Food Storage on Aircraft, Food Preparation-Presentation
Etiquette According to Culture
Business Etiquette and Protocol (Do’s and Don’ts)
Expensing, Contracts, and Corporate Methods
Firefighting Drills
Water Ditching Drills
First Aid, AED, Tempus and Hypoxia
CPR Training
Evacuation Scenario Drills
Sea Survival Drills and Water Inversion Dunker
CRM
Emergency Procedures (Ground Evacuation Ditching), Aviation Security and Dangerous Goods
FAA Policies in Private Aviation
Aircraft Configurations
Cabin Management Overview, Cabin Control and Operation
Dressing the Jet, Stocking, and Inventory
Galley Management/ Galley Handover / Takeover Process
In-flight Troubleshooting
One of the main roles of a Cabin Attendant is service! We know how important top notch service is and have implemented a culinary experience into our program that our students find extremely beneficial and unforgettable. Students are not just taught how to plate meals. They are taught how to plan, prep, stow and serve, along with a few tricks of the trade you can only get from experienced leaders in the industry. In order to provide this premium experience to our students we partnered with licensed local catering experts, Silverlining of South Florida, the number one premier provider of in-flight catering service in the private aviation industry. In addition to their culinary in-flight expertise they give our students official training and certification in food handling and safety.
Our program truly encompasses everything you need to get started in a career in aviation, and we offer everything a Corporate Flight Attendant would be looking for in a recurrent training. We have done it all to make it easier for our students to get jobs in a competitive industry and start flying. As we say at VVIP International, “one flight at a time”. We connect our students with current leads in the industry and we guide them to where they can apply for work. We also have preferred partnerships with charter companies and private operators who exclusively staff our VVIP Corporate Flight Attendants.
We are members of the NBAA (National Business Aviation Association) and are now in the preliminary steps to becoming part of the WCA (Women in Corporate Aviation). We have arranged career scholarships for students and provide discounts for students who attend networking events like the NBAA Flight Attendant Conference in Hartford CT, where operators and charter companies are in attendance and looking to recruit.
