n the highest levels of professionalism and account for personal decisions and actions, all the while remaining aware of the way every individual contributes towards the organization’s and industry’s overall safety. Essentially, professionalism is the maintenance of the right conduct, attitude and qualities and this paper will discuss professionalism in relation to aviation.
Compared to other industries, aviation has unique complexities mainly because of the long history of federal regulations that bound it and, equally importantly, the emphasis it places on safety (Gill & Shergill, 2004). Professionalism in aviation is the knowledge possessed by stakeholders about their industry and it dictates that dedicated and international-class aircraft and passenger handling services are provided by personnel who have the necessary skills and experience. Among others, that translates to efficiency in customer service, always adhering to safety and security trends, generation of business and growth opportunities, continuously upgrading human resources and knowledge, providing specialized tools and equipment and committing to corporate social responsibility. When passengers get aboard aircraft, they will first encounter the airline attendants and possibly the pilots. But most of the time, their professionalism may not be as obvious to the passengers as is their presence, although without it the industry would be lost in politics, ethical issues, blame games and mind games (Gill & Shergill, 2004). Therefore, being a flight attendant, pilot or any other personnel in the aviation industry calls for the joint responsibility for the comfort and safety of customers. That means that even the most basic tasks such as greeting passengers are conducted professionally. Therefore, everyone who handles aircraft as well as passengers must be mentally fit for their duties.