Here I am, a heavily tattooed man wanting to dive into the world of aviation. Most of my tattoos can be covered but I have a few on my hands that cannot. I was just wondering, how tolerant airlines are of tattoos, and how tolerant might they become? Could I wear flying gloves like Ryan Gosling in the movie Drive? Thank you guys for your time and I look forward to reading your feedback.
Jacob,
Unless you want to wear gloves while in uniform at all times I would get them removed. No tattoos can be visible.
Tory
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Jacob,
I’m thinking wearing gloves at your interview will be your first and probably only issue. The airlines are quite specific (both Regionals and Majors) that there can be no visible tattoos.
Airline interview Scenario 1:
HR:“Soooo what’s with the gloves?”
You: “I have tattoos on my hands”
HR: “next”
Really short interview.
Scenario 2:
HR: “Soooo what’s with the gloves?”
You: “I have really bad eczema”
HR: “Ok but we’ve had people say that before and they had tattoos, let’s see” (you pull off your gloves) oh so you have tattoos and you lied, NEXT"
Scenario 3:
HR: “Soooo what’s with the gloves?”
You: “I have really bad eczema”
HR: “Sorry to hear but you’re good otherwise, congrats”
Days, weeks, months, years go by, at some point somewhere someone sees you without your gloves, gets pissed because their brother, son, friend couldn’t get hired with tats, calls the Chief Pilot. You lied on your application, you’re fired and every other airline knows why.
Adam
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Thanks for your feedback, Tory!
Well Adam, I guess I can now pursue my career as a Flash Dance Instructor. I knew ATP didn’t want my money anyway. I’d kidding, but on a more serious note I have used makeup and bandaids before. I don’t like hiding my tattoos, not because I’m proud of them, but because it’s uncomfortable. Do you think Airlines will eventually take a more progressive stance towards tattoos? Thank you for your feedback, Adam.
Jacob,
While anything is possible the airlines are still very conservative and only make those kind of changes when they absolutely must (ie, many still don’t even allow beards). I don’t see it happening any time soon.
Btw I’m sure ATP will be happy to train you but that wasn’t your question.
Adam
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Also, I have “removed” a few tattoos from my hands. Depending on the boldness of the ink the removal process will act more like a fading process. It looks more like some one was drawing on me and I tried to wash it off but it didn’t completely come off. Hopefully the Airlines will get a more relaxed policy as the younger generation moves up and the old dogs get pushed out.
Well I guess that’s one way to refer to them 
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I wouldn’t hold my breath. While the pilots being hired are younger, the “old dogs” are the ones in mgmt. What you need to understand is airlines are VERY image conscious. If you drive a bus and have an accident it’s generally not a big deal. When a pilot has a bad day at work they end up on the six o’clock World News. Right or wrong when the picture of the Capt goes public and they look more like your “6ix9ine” than Sully you can just watch the share price drop and ticket sales go down.
That may very well change but personally I think we’ll see drones first.
Adam
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That’s very true, thank you for your feedback. You were a big help!
Jacob,
I do not see the tattoo policies changing anytime soon. The industry is very formal and likely to stay that way. Passengers want to see a professional look in their pilots and the airlines have policies that support that. I can’t see that changing, ever.
Chris
Right, I’m sure no one wants to fly with a tatted out thug like myself. I’ll for sure make them empty their pockets as they depart the aircraft. That’s a joke! Thank you for your feedback, Chris.
I often see pilots wearing short sleeve shirts as part of their uniform. Are long sleeve shirts an option? I of course see pilots in jackets. I imagine this maybe company dependent. I’m curious if there are uniform options for covering tattoos on the arm?
Mahalo
Kaipo,
Virtually all airlines have very strict rules against “visible” tattoos. Yes all airlines have long sleeve uniform options but you’ll be the guy sweating in long sleeves in the summer and no if I’m you’re Capt I’m not going to freeze in the cockpit because of your poor life decisions.
Adam
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Thanks for your response.
Poor. Life. Decisions.
The backhand wasn’t necessary, I didn’t give any attitude for it.
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Kaipo,
That was no backhand, simply a comment made based on experience. I’ve flown with pilots rocking the long sleeves, they ALWAYS want to crank the air. Further it wasn’t a judgment about you, your lifestyle or anything else but the reality is this. You made a decision to get some permanent artwork put on your body, probably at a relatively young age, not thinking about possible future implications (for whatever reason, you thought it was cool, pay homage to someone, you simply wanted to, whatever). Now you’re thinking of becoming an airline pilot. A very traditional career choice where that earlier decision could literally derail your plans. I apologize if I offended you but that by definition is a poor life decision.
Many people come on this site seeking advice and when I answer I’m not just answering you, I’m speaking to everyone lurking in the background who may read this post. Want ink? Go crazy. I have some. But recognize the fact you may not be the same person or have the same goals at 30 as you did at 18.
Adam
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