Air Ticket Travel Agent Jobs | Ticket Agent Careers
Airline Ticket Agent Jobs - What is the Job of a Tickets Agent? What do Air Ticket Travel Agent Jobs Involve?
Millions of Americans travel by air, sea, or car every year to reach a vacation destination. These travelers need the services of ticket agents in order to confirm the registrations, check passenger baggage, and provide travel information.
Most reservation agents work as airline ticket agents, answering telephone and e-mail questions via call centers, and offering suggestions on routes, scheduling, airfares, and hotel accommodations. Most air ticket travel agents are company specific and use the companies computer systems in order to make or change travel reservations.
Transportation ticket agents are also called airport service agents, ticket clerks, reservation clerks, and all of these professionals work in airplanes and bus stations selling customer tickets, selling airline seats to passengers, and checking in luggage. These professionals may also answer questions and offer directions, check passports, and assist customers who are having trouble with self service machines.
Airport gate agents are ticket agents who are responsible for helping passengers board an airliner and making sure that they have paid the fee for their plane ticket. Gate agents will show passengers to the correct boarding area, and help them with their seating assignments, make boarding announcements, and provide help to disabled passengers.
Travel clerks jobs are responsible for providing information to travelers on restaurants, emergency services, and hotel accommodations. Travel clerks may also help customers fill out travel documents and answer other questions that the travel clerk may be able to answer.
Working Conditions for Airline Ticket Agent Jobs - How is the Working Environment for Air Ticket Travel Agent Jobs?
The work environment of air ticket travel agents and travel agent jobs in general usually includes airports, trains, and bus terminals. The working environment is clean and well lit, spending most of their day sitting down at a desk talking with customers on a phone, and using the computer in order to plan trips and to make reservations. Call centers can be busy and frantic, especially during peak seasons such as the holidays.
Lifting heavy baggage is sometimes the role of a ticket agent career, and these agents may have to stand on their feet for extended stretches of time.
Most ticket agents and travel clerks work 40 hours a week, with slightly over 10% working part time. Due to the 24 hour a day nature of airline travel, it is common for airline ticket agent jobs to have to work evenings and weekends, with those with the most seniority receiving the best time slots.
Airline ticket agent work can be stressful, and repetitive, and dealing with angry customers who are tired of waiting to board a plane can be difficult, as ticket agents are usually the first blamed for an airplanes delay.
Tickets Agent Education - How to Become a Ticket Agent - How to Receive Your Airline Ticket Agent Training
Airline ticket agent training usually requires a high school diploma in a formal training program lasting a few weeks. Standard practices of the airliner are taught, as well as taking procedures, and the computer system technology that the airline company uses is explained, and how to book flights and determine fares is also taught.
Transportation ticket agents must also be familiar with Federal and state guidelines regarding transportation, and the safety procedures of these methods of travel. Ticket agents will usually receive mentorship when they start out with a supervisor listening to make sure that they’re providing the proper level of service.
Ticket Agent Training Requirements - How to Become a Airline Ticket Agent
Airline ticket agents applicants should be least 18 years of age, and had experience using computers and typing, in order to book tickets and reservations. Travel agents who are responsible for checking and luggage must be able to lift heavy baggage.
Most travel agents and ticket agent jobs are responsible for dealing with the public, so they must have a professional looking appearance and a good personality. Fluency in the English language in a clear voice are essential due to the frequent use of telephone systems.
In order to advance as a travel clerk, having a bachelor’s degree in management or marketing will usually lead to a supervisory position. Managerial positions in an airline ticket office are usually dependent upon both education and seniority.
Tickets Agent Employment - What is the Future of Airline Ticket Agent Jobs?
Over the next decade, airline ticket agent jobs should grow by about 1%, as more airline customers turn to the Internet in order to book their travel plans. In addition, most airports and train stations have ticket kiosks which will automatically allow passengers to make reservations and to purchase tickets, which will then print out on the ticket machine itself.
Not all ticket agent jobs can be automated, however, the future will hold more and more of the work of an airline ticket agent, to be done by computers. Job applicants will face stiff competition, as airline ticket agents usually receive discounted airfare, and many individuals who enjoy traveling will enter into the profession simply for this reason.
Employment of travel agents varies with the economy, and recessions and depressions often lead to massive layoffs as people put their vacation plans on hold.
Air Ticket Travel Agent Pay Scale - How Much Do Airline Ticket Agent Jobs Earn?
In 2006, reservation ticket agent jobs had median annual earnings of $20,540, with air ticket travel agents having the highest median salary at $32,850. Some benefits for airline ticket agents include discounted airfare on flights, and some individuals may receive medical benefits as they are working full time for an airline company.