How much money do airline pilots make?
Annual Pilot Salary Range
According to The May 2021 Occupational Outlook Handbook, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the salary for commercial pilots is $99,640 per year. The median annual wage for airline pilots, copilots and flight engineers is $202,180.
Normally, 1,500 hours of flight time are required before a new pilot can fly commercially, though there is an exception for certain military experience that cuts the requirement in half. The so-called 1,500-hour rule was passed after the fatal Colgan Air crash in February 2009 near Buffalo, New York.
A regional airline pilots in the U.S. typically starts out making an hourly rate of $20 – $50 per hour, or about $20,000-$40,000 per year, depending on the airline, type of aircraft, and the pilot's experience level.
Total 30-year career values at the major airlines range from $5.3 million to $11.2 million with an average of $8.1 million. This provides an annual average salary and benefit value of $270,000 or $22,500 per month for a 30-year career. Shorter careers provide smaller values and longer ones higher values.
Airline pilots don't necessarily get paid a “salary”. Instead, pilots are paid per flight hour. Meaning a pilot is only paid while their airplane is running. As of May 2021, the median annual earnings for airline pilots was $202,180.
Average Delta Pilot yearly pay in the United States is approximately $187,603, which is 189% above the national average. Salary information comes from 107 data points collected directly from employees, users, and past and present job advertisements on Indeed in the past 36 months.
Applicants must meet 1 of the following requirements:
Must have a high school diploma with a cumulative GPA of 2.5. Must have completed 24 college credit hours from an accredited institution with a minim cumulative GPA of 2.5. Hold a Private Pilot's Certificate with verification of high school diploma or GED.
For larger aircraft, typically people use some form of the 3/6 Rule: 3 times the altitude (in thousands of feet) you have to lose is the distance back to start the descent; 6 times your groundspeed is your descent rate.
Flight times within the duty periods are restricted to a maximum of 8 hours for flight crews consisting of one pilot and 10 hours for flight crews consisting of two pilots. The 8-hour and 10-hour flight time limitations include any additional commercial flying performed by the flight crew during the period.
According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for an American Airlines pilot is around $127,000, Some pilots (mostly new first officers) can earn as little as $90,000 per year, while others can earn upwards of $200,000 or more.
What is the highest paying airline for pilots?
- Spirit Airlines. Spirit Airlines is a major American ultra-low-cost carrier operating throughout the US, Caribbean, and Latin America. ...
- Frontier Airlines. ...
- American Airways. ...
- Sun Country Airlines. ...
- Hawaiian Airlines.
Salary is based on the size of the jet flown as well as their years of service and a charter pilot's salary can rage anywhere from $60k-$200k. Unlike a regional pilot, a charter pilot has a widely varying schedule since they are often “on-call”.

- Helicopter Pilot. Salary range: $52,000-$115,000 per year. ...
- Private Pilot. Salary range: $51,500-$100,000 per year. ...
- Corporate Pilot. Salary range: $55,000-$100,000 per year. ...
- Chief Pilot. Salary range: $64,000-$100,000 per year. ...
- Assistant Chief Pilot. ...
- Air Charter Pilot. ...
- Airline Pilot. ...
- Commercial Pilot.