Francisco,
Go check out American Airlines new contract for regionals. Definitely going to change a lot in the industry really soon. If I’m not mistaken they’ve raise 1st year FO pay to $93 an hour by 2023. Along with adjustments to flow through agreement and top pay amount, and insensitive if you don’t flow by year 5, retention bonuses, etc
This should start a positive ripple effect for quite some time. Great time to get started if considering.
David
Hi Everyone,
I’ve been crunching some numbers and I need some help. For purpose of what I’m doing I just need averages/estimates, nothing exact. I know most of this things depend on the airline, seniority, etc.
What is a good estimate for total monthly PAID hours (Not flight hours)?? I’ve read some posts where it says 75 and other closer to 85
What’s an average monthly per diem amount considering working the hours shown in the 1st question?? I’ve read posts with $4,000/year and others with $800/month (@Chris @Hannah )
@Chris mentioned his airline takes $130 out of his monthly pay for LTD, is that a average number ??
I see airlines give benefits like Life, Health, Dental and vision Insurance, do they deduct this from your pay or do they pay for it ?? In the case they deduct, what’s a good estimate??
What’s an average 401K contribution from airlines, I’ve seen from 5% to 16% 100% match ??
I’ve read some posts where Short Term disability insurance is mentioned, is this covered under the LTD policy or is it different?? What’s the cost?
If I’m missing any $ benefit/deduction here please let me know.
Thanks,
Francisco,
You are asking highly detailed questions, I will be happy to answer them from my experience, but please keep in mind that each airline is different and these numbers could vary significantly.
I would plan 75. 85 could certainly happen, but plan on 75 and you will not be disappointed.
I average about $800 in per diem per month.
No idea on that one, but it is consistent with both of the major airlines I have worked for.
The airline and the pilot have some sort of cost sharing on benefits, your portion is deducted from your paycheck. I pay several hundred per month for the benefits you listed, but I have a large family.
When I was at a regional it was 5%, at my airlines it is %16
Short term is different than long term. We dod not have it at my airline.
Union dues are roughly 2% of your pay, it is not optional.
Chris
Francisco,
Chris answered your questions well but you need to keep in mind, until you know which airline, which aircraft, etc etc etc there’s really no way to accurately crunch any numbers. For example:
Where are you in your career, how is your airline staffed on that particular fleet and what does the contract allow? If you’re new on Reserve you may never break 75hrs if the company is fat in pilots. If they’re not you could be hiding from scheduling, getting reassigned daily and getting close to 100hrs.
Domestic per diem is around $1.50, international could be closer to $3.00? Per diem is based on TAFB (time away from base). Are you flying 2,3, or 4day trips?
As Chris said it varies. You can also buy more.
All are avaliable at a cost. Depends on if it’s just you, you and spouse, or whole family. Usually pretty reasonable.
5% at the Regional, 16% at my Major. No contribution required.
Generally short term means sick time, if it’s over 3mos LTD kicks in.
Union dues and of course SS and taxes. Some will also charge for parking.
Adam
Thanks guys
You don’t know how helpful this forum has been to my decision making process!!!
I have my admissions flight on Wednesday. I’ll let you know how it goes…
Francisco,
I am glad we could be of help. Please let us know how the admissions flight goes and remember that it is not a flight to evaluate your innate skills as a pilot. It is an introductory flight and meant to see if you enjoy flying small airplanes.
Chris
Chris, that year 4 to 5 signifcant pay cut. is that because you upgraded to captain?
Chris says in his post “I’m in year 5, last year at Regional made $100k. Now @ Spirit, this year prob make $60k”.
You would never take a paycut when you upgrade.
Adam
Hello all,
I’m am curious as to what it means to live on base. Do you rent or own? Is it a tiny apartment, condo,…? My end goal is to be based out of BWI which is the closest (currently 40 min car ride) large airport to my hometown.
Looking on AirlinePilotCentral.com it appears there is no regional airline that would have me based relatively close to home. Does this mean I would have to live on base for 2-4 years while flying regional?
Lastly, what does it take to become a captain and how much more responsibility is it vs FO? Thanks!
Mason,
To clarify, living “on base” is what military members can do. Airline pilots live “in base”, which is not a well defined concept, but means any place that you can reasonably drive to work. If you live in the DC area, there are several regional airlines with bases in IAD and DCA. If you live close enough to drive to work, then you would be “in base”.
As for BWI, to my knowledge only Southwest and United have bases there and the United pilots are coo-based at BWI, IAD and DCA.
Chris
Thank you Chris!
Now you say that if I’m in the area I can commute. In your experience/opinion, how far is too far for commuting? IAD is roughly 1.5 hrs for me and DCA is 1hr 20min. This distance is obviously to far for a typical “9-5” worker due to making 5 round trips during the week. However as a pilot when you go on a 4 day trip then 3 days off, you are really only making that commute 1 time per week.
Mason,
You are correct that you’d only be making the commute when you start and end your trip. How far is too far is entirely up to you. Probably half the pilots I know commute from other cities, states and even countries to go to work. The airlines don’t care where you live as long as you can get to work on time and be well rested.
Adam
Awesome! Thank you Adam.
Now how does one become a captain once successfully made it to FO?
Mason,
The easy and common answer is (like most things at the airlines) SENIORITY. Seniority governs your life at the airline. What plane you fly, what base, your schedule, vacation, etc etc and yes when you’re eligible to upgrade. You can literally bid 787 Capt your first day at your airline. Will you get it? No. There’s need to a) be an available slot and b) no one senior to you that wants it. Once there is and you do you will be awarded Capt. The thing is they just don’t hand you the 4 stripes. Your do need to successfully complete upgrade training which frankly not every one does.
Adam
Thank you Adam I appreciate the info. I was just under the assumption that extra schooling is required just for that title.
@Cforero7. What caused the pay drop between year 4-5? Only the switch of airlines? Can a switch cause that much of a drop?
Speaking of extra schooling… I have read upon several other articles, talk about a bachelors degree is needed to get hired at a major. A bachelor degree In what?
Mason,
A Bachelor’s Degree is any subject or major that you would enjoy doing if something fell through with aviation that you could not fly. Use it as a backup plan for something you see yourself being able to do enjoyment wise. The only thing I would ensure is that the degree comes from an accredited school.
Brady
Hi Brady,
I currently hold a MD state Journeyman electrician license and also went thru a 3 year union apprenticeship while acquiring my national crane operators license. Is it absolutely necessary for me to still acquire a random bachelors degree?
Mason,
A degree would not be required if your ultimate goal was to fly for an airline that doesn’t require one and hasn’t required one historically. Those airlines are the LCCs…Southwest, Sun Country, Spirit, Frontier, Jet Blue, Allegiant, Breeze, Avelo…I would throw Alaska in there too. Alaska used to require a degree, but hasn’t for some time. That said, anecdotally, I would say that the majority of the pilots that I fly with have a four-year degree.
If, however, you want to fly for an airline such as American, United or Delta, while those airlines currently do not require a degree, a degree is still preferred which isn’t nothing. They are the most competitive airlines to be hired from as well. So, the question is do you want to roll the dice and hope that you can get hired by one of those airlines without the degree or would you rather be as qualified of a candidate as you can be like the majority of the pilots that apply to those airlines?
Your electrician experience and union apprenticeship will not satisfy the four-year degree “check box.”
Tory