Singapore's first long-haul budget carrier Scoot said it could fly to five or more destinations other than Sydney, when it begins operations in June.

In an exclusive interview with MediaCorp, Scoot said it has also recruited the 51 pilots it needs.

The pilots -- 26 captains and 25 first officers -- will undergo training soon.

It has also hired half of the 240 cabin crew staff it requires.

Scoot received more than a thousand online applications for its first of three mass recruitment drives for cabin crew.

The airline is open to hiring those without any prior experience.

To make the cut, all they need to have is "Scootitude".

One of the candidates, Ms Nicole Yang said: "I have the Scootitude - good attitude and a big smile."

And that took all of a five-hour process to prove.

Candidates were first tested on their verbal and mathematical skills, followed by a problem-solving task as a group, while their every move is assessed by staff from Scoot.

After that is a test on public-speaking.

Candidates face a final round of interviews before being informed on the same day if they made the cut.

In the first recruitment drive, only about one in two candidates were offered a job.

Ng Ju Li, Scoot's head of cabin crew, said: "We are not a stereotypical airline that looks only for beauties of a certain height and weight... all those things are not so important to us.

"They need to be able to converse and entertain passengers to keep them occupied, because we are going medium to long haul, and will need to keep passengers engaged."

Scoot's CEO Campbell Wilson, said: "They are constantly up and down the aisle, and they are constantly selling, because at the end of the day, our model is based on people purchasing services, over and above the very cheap seat that we are selling to begin with."

The typical starting salary for cabin crew working with a budget carrier is about S$2,200. And one difference with Scoot is that compared to most airlines, Scoot's cabin crew will be expected to share rooms during their transit stops.

The next two recruitment drives will take place in February and March.