Japanese for Flight Attendants: Announcements, Service and Safety

The cabin crew register

Japanese service language uses two kinds of keigo at once. Respectful forms, sonkeigo, raise the passenger's actions: meshiagaru for eat or drink, go-riyō ni naru for use. Humble forms, kenjōgo, lower your own actions: o-mochi shimasu, I will bring it, or o-shirabe itashimasu, I will look into it. On top of that, polite endings such as de gozaimasu replace plain desu in many set phrases.

You do not need to invent keigo from scratch. Most cabin phrases are fixed, and learning them as complete units is faster and safer than building them from rules. If you want the rules behind them, the posts on sonkeigo and kenjōgo and on understanding keigo you hear in shops and stations are good companions.

Boarding and greetings at the door

Boarding is the first impression. Crew at the door greet each passenger, check boarding passes if required, and direct people to their aisle. The greeting changes with the time of day, and a short welcome is always followed by guidance, not conversation.

Seat numbers are read with the row number and letter, for example jūni-banme no ē, or simply jūni no ē. Gesturing with an open hand rather than a pointed finger is also part of the politeness.

In-flight announcements

Announcements follow a fixed shape: a greeting to everyone, the airline and flight information, the instruction or information, and a closing thank-you. Minasama, everyone, opens almost every one. The verbs are in the most formal forms, and the pace is slower than conversation, with clear pauses between phrases.

The lines below are typical building blocks rather than any particular airline's script. Replace the bracketed parts with your airline name, destination and times.

Seatbelts and safety instructions

Safety language has to be clear first and polite second, but in Japanese cabins it manages both. Instructions are usually made with o or go plus the verb stem and kudasai, which is polite but still unmistakably an instruction. For an individual passenger, a cushion word such as osoreirimasu ga makes the reminder feel less like a telling-off.

Learn the equipment words as well as the instructions, because passengers ask about them: where the life vest is, whether they can use the toilet, when they can use their phone.

In a real emergency, crew switch to short, loud commands rather than keigo, and airlines train these specifically. Learn your airline's official emergency commands exactly as written; do not soften or paraphrase them.

Drink and meal service

Service is where you have the most conversation. Offer choices with gozaimasu, there is, ask preferences with nasaimasu ka or ikaga nasaimasu ka, and confirm before you pour or serve. Passengers often answer with a single word, and repeating their choice back politely is part of the routine.

For meals, name the options simply. If a choice has run out, apologise before offering what is left, rather than announcing only what remains.

Handling requests and small problems

Requests come at any time: blankets, extra water, help with a bag, a seat change, a crying baby, a spilled drink. The pattern is to acknowledge, act, and follow up. If you need to check something, say so and give a reason to wait, so the passenger does not wonder whether you forgot.

When you cannot do what is asked, the structure matters more than the vocabulary: apology, brief reason, alternative. This is the same shape used in any Japanese service complaint, which the Handle a Customer Complaint mission in Unihongo lets you rehearse out loud.

Arrival and saying goodbye

Before landing, crew check seatbelts, collect cups and remind passengers about belongings. After landing, the announcement asks everyone to stay seated until the seatbelt sign goes off, then thanks them. At the door, a short farewell is enough; passengers are in a hurry.

If you also help passengers after they leave the aircraft, the post on Japanese for airport ground staff covers the airport side, and the arrival post covers the language passengers will need at immigration and customs.