Qantas flight attendant salary: the latest enterprise agreement rates
Qantas cabin crew are covered by the EBA11 enterprise agreement, varied in 2024 to include new pay scales for long-haul A350 flying. The Flight Attendants' Association of Australia (FAAA) published the updated salary table, effective from 18 June 2025. The standard Flight Attendant classification earns an annual salary of $70,477.46. Other roles include:
- Trainee Flight Attendant: $64,798.00
- Flight Attendant Entry: $69,068.17
- Customer Service Supervisor: $98,165.96
- Customer Service Manager: $122,821.82
These are base annual salaries, not including overtime, allowances, or penalty rates. The agreement also introduced triple-time pay for ultra-long-range flights exceeding 20 hours.
How Qantas flight attendant pay sits against the national average
The national full-time adult average weekly ordinary time earnings is $2,083.70 a week, or about $108,352 a year (ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026). That is the reference line on this site. A Qantas flight attendant on $70,477 is about 35% below that average. The full-time median (ABS Employee Earnings, August 2025) is about $90,532, so the flight attendant salary is also below the typical full-time worker.
For context, the national minimum wage from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 an hour, or $52,255 a year on a 38-hour week. The Qantas flight attendant salary sits above the minimum but below the all-employees median of about $74,100.
State comparisons
Full-time average earnings vary by state. The Qantas flight attendant salary of $70,477 is below every state's full-time average:
- New South Wales: $109,658
- Victoria: $106,137
- Queensland: $106,064
- South Australia: $102,450
- Western Australia: $115,825
- Tasmania: $96,008
- Northern Territory: $103,173
- Australian Capital Territory: $119,090
Place a salary on the line to see how any amount compares to the national average.
A resident take-home pay sketch
For a Qantas flight attendant earning $70,477 in 2026–27, the tax calculation is:
- Tax-free threshold: $0–$18,200
- 15% on $18,201–$45,000: $4,020
- 30% on $45,001–$135,000: $7,643 (on $70,477 – $45,000 = $25,477)
- Total income tax: $11,663
- Medicare levy (2%): $1,410
- Total tax and levy: $13,073
- Take-home pay: $57,404 a year, or about $1,104 a week.
This is a rough sketch. Actual take-home depends on deductions (e.g., union fees, work-related expenses) and any tax offsets. The average full-time worker on $108,352 would pay about $25,456 in tax and levy, taking home about $82,896.
Where the figures come from
The salary data comes from the FAAA's EBA11 variation guide, which is the enterprise agreement between Qantas and its cabin crew. The national averages are from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings survey, May 2026. Medians are from the ABS Employee Earnings and Hours survey, August 2025. The minimum wage is set by Fair Work from 1 July 2026. Tax rates are for 2026–27 residents.
Job medians provides median earnings for hundreds of occupations. States and territories breaks down averages by region.
Why the Qantas flight attendant salary matters
Cabin crew pay has been a focus of industrial relations reform, including the 'Closing the Loopholes' legislation. The EBA11 variation was negotiated to align with the cost of a regulated labour hire arrangement order. The FAAA estimates the domestic operation's wage bill will rise by about 26%. For international crew, the outcome is less certain but the new pay scales reflect a material increase.
For anyone considering a career as a Qantas flight attendant, the salary is competitive within the aviation industry but sits below the national full-time average. The role offers opportunities for overtime, allowances, and career progression to supervisor or manager levels, which pay significantly more.