Eileen Louwerse, 26, is a flying nanny for Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates and one of the most luxurious and best valued in the world.
how to become a flight nanny
Louwerse is a flight attendant, but in addition, the Dutch native was trained at Norland College in the United Kingdom — where the nannies of British royals come from — to support parents during the flight. The nanny service is free for everyone in business class, first class, and economy, and is only available on Etihad’s long haul and extra long haul flights.
How do you become a flying nanny? Business Insider spoke with Eileen Louwerse.
Liking kids is a must
For many people it sounds rosy: flying around the world, and, in the meantime, looking after children. Yet you certainly shouldn’t think too lightly about the job, says Louwerse.
“You have to like children, otherwise you are in the wrong place anyway. You must have the ability to move around in their world.”
Training to be an in-flight nanny is optional. If children aren’t your thing, you might be better off working as an ‘ordinary’ flight attendant.
Nannies must have the proper background training
Etihad requires a Minimum High School certification or any higher education.
“I studied leisure and hospitality,” said Louwerse. “During my first internship I worked abroad in an animation team [like a camp counselor], and I really liked the contact with children. For my last internship, I went to Spain to work as a hostess there. I commuted a lot between the airports and hotels and saw lots of stewardesses. Then I thought: That’s really fun.”
They must be flight attendants before becoming flying nannies
“I went to apply and was able to work for Ryanair in London quite soon,” Louwerse said about her early days. “I wanted to continue to grow and applied for a job at Etihad. That was when they just had new uniforms, the new A380, the food and beverage managers … I thought it was very nice to work in a company that grows every day.”
Why did she not stay with Ryanair? “I liked that too, but at some point I wanted to work internationally,” she said. “Etihad is, of course, highly regarded as the best airline in the world in 2009, 2010, and 2011.”
To work for Etihad, they have to move to Abu Dhabi
“If you want to work as a cabin crew at Etihad, you have to live in Abu Dhabi,” explained Louwerse. “You get free (shared) accommodation via Etihad and are taken to and from work if you’re on call,”says Louwerse about two of the many benefits.
“Etihad grows so fast and has such a large network, everything comes together in Abu Dhabi. It is really the easiest thing to live here.”
Louwerse finds living in the city anything but a trial. “It is really a nice place to live,” she said. “You can easily leave on weekends or do things if you have a few days off. We are with quite a large group of Dutch stewardesses and things are regularly organized for us by Etihad.”
Once they’re trained at Etihad, they can apply for nanny training
“Once you have worked for Etihad, you have the opportunity to apply for nanny training,” said Louwerse. “I have been at Etihad for 2.5 years, and I’ve been a nanny for about two years. I worked for about five to six months at Etihad before I was allowed to do the training.”
Finishing training as an in-flight nanny depends on when Etihad offers the courses. Before the training, the company evaluates whether you’re suitable.”Have you worked with children before? Do you have affinity with them? How do you deal with certain situations? You will be selected on the basis of a lot of questions,” said Louwerse.
