How Much do Corporate Pilots Make?

[Guest enave]

I've heard a certain talk-show host brag about having a private jet. That's made me wonder, how hard does a personal pilot for a celebrity work? I mean, does the pilot basically sit around all day doing nothing until the call comes in to fly somewhere? Anyone have any idea how compensation works - are they paid based on the number of trips in a given month?

[Splash_One 0]

I'm not 100% sure on this- but I watched a couple of shows on NetJets. I cant say how much they make- but I know they shedule on a weekly basis- and fly with someone who has a similar or exact route with them- so they can be flying with a different person everyday. IE- Mary and Bob depart ATL and fly to SFO. The next day Bob is sheduled to fly over to ATL- so he is paired with another pilot who is heading that way- and the same thing happens with Mary- but whichever route she takes. I think that was confusing. If you have the Discovery Wings Channel- keep a lookout- they play it a couple times a month. Also check on Yahoo Jobs (or something called that). They have a salary section that has many jobs- including corporate pilots.Jason

[Guest TWVA395]

The amount of pay a pilot gets varies. United's top pilots make around 250K a year. Well some of the other guys come in around 75K. It really depends.:-jumpy------------------------Kenneth WeikTWVA 395Travel Services Directorhttp://www.fly-twva.com-----------------------

[Splash_One 0]

Heres the link to the salary calcualtor: http://swz-hotjobs.salary.com/I have no idea how accurate it is- but it is interesting :) It says I would make $81,000 minimun and $108,000 max as a small jet pilot- in my area :)Jay :-wave

[Guest enave]

thats interesting. It's pretty much the range that I expected.The second part of the question though, is what do they do all day? I mean, most of the time their employer isn't actually flying so, do they just sit around playing cards?

[Guest TWVA395]

They normally go on a "on call" status, at 1 they'll be asked to have the plane ready for 3 or something. They have a limit to 100 hours per month, so the turbo prop guys work a bunch but the long haul ones get half the month off.:-jumpy------------------------Kenneth WeikTWVA 395Travel Services Directorhttp://www.fly-twva.com-----------------------

[Guest]

Corporate pilot pay varies widely. At NetJets, starting pay is about $35k and 5 year captain pay is about $80k. I have a friend that is captain on a GIV and GV at a Fortune 100 company and makes about $120k. I also know a guy that flies a GIII for a charter company and only makes about $50K.BTW that salary calculator shows a flight instructor making $80k in my area. I never broke $15k flying 1000 hrs a year a few years ago....I don't know where they get their info!

[Guest]

"United's top pilotsmake around 250K a year.""I'm pretty sure it wasn't that high, and I KNOW it's nowhere near there now after the bankruptcy. We've probably seen the last of salaries like this, the industry is changing so fundamentally now."Before concessions there were some senior 744 captains making over $300k at UAL. My friends dad was one of them. I think he worked about 8 days a month. Those days are long gone. I believe they took about a 30% cut.

[Guest enave]

"Before concessions there were some senior 744 captains making over $300k at UAL. My friends dad was one of them. I think he worked about 8 days a month. Those days are long gone. I believe they took about a 30% cut."So now they are making 210K? Wow. I bet they have to live on Ramen and grape juice. huh?

[Guest]

keep in mind that the ual pilot making 250k has been there at least 20 yrs.a starting regional airline first officer will make typically 18-24/hr with a 70-80hr monthly guarantee. not much.a corporate first officer will start out just as low. with todays environment the wages have been driven way down due to low demand for pilots. i have a friend who is a corporate fo and makes around 100 bucks a trip.

[Guest]

Hey guys,How's it going?This is most probably the ONE big thing about professional aviation that gets the most attention, and is reported inaccurately almost 100% of the time.How do I know? Here's my resume':-soloed July '73-university CFI-AI '77-'79-night freight '79-commuter SA226TC '79-'83-Northwest Airlines '83-presentRemember one HUGE thing about wages (airline flying in particular).... your wages, and work rules are negotiated between your pilot's union (most are ALPA), and the airline you work for. What I earn as a Boeing 757 Captain at Northwest may be FAR different from what a "left-seater" at United, Delta, American, ATA, etc. might bring home. Also, we are paid per

[Guest tallpilot]

Hey Billy, you hit the nail on the old head. Like Howard Cosell use to say "Just telling it like it is"With all the layoffs my son got bumped from DC-9 Capt (after it took him 12 years to make it) to Airbus First Officer and it will probably be a couple of years until he can hold a Capt position again. :-(Your sure right about the international flying also. I'm glad I flew domestic most of my career. Going on 67 :-) but I've had a lot of friends cash out sooner infact one never got to spend his first retirement check Like you said it ain't like it used to be, but still a pretty good job.Blue skies and tail winds,Ed Weber a.k.a tallpilot

[Guest]

Ed!My good friend...how's it going? (I had the distinct pleasure of crewing as Ed's F/O on many a DC-10 trip back in the 90's :))Sorry to hear about your son. Most of my F/Os nowadays are coming back off of the "God Seat" on the -9. Great guys to work with, for they tend to be on the same page as me thinking "like a Capt." most of the time. As you know, that's not a requirement as an F/O, and some just kind of hang out in the right seat, pull the gear up, and let you do all the "thinking", but when you the weather, etc. goes in the crapper, it's nice to have both of you working your brains overtime (and that's kind of painful for those like me...:)). I'm sure he'll be back on the DC-9 within a year or so after we get through the latest round of "pain" that most all airline employees are "enjoying"....good luck to him.AFA all the "fatigue" stuff, all the data that I've been privy to, points to the fact that int'l stuff "literally" kills ya. My plan is to hang out on the 757 for a few years until we start flying the Airbus 330 here in KMSP (prob two years away...all of them will be KDTW based for awhile), then drive that beauty over the ocean for five, then retire back here on Mr. Boeings fabulous "seven-five". A good friend of mine from NASA relayed that those that give their bodies a couple of years "rest" before retirement, live A LOT longer than those that fly international right up to their last day.You keep enjoying that retirement, and I'll let you know the first chance I get for a long KLAS layover.take care senior'...BBall-------------------------Capt. William "BBall" BallBoeing 757, Northwest AirlinesSenior Editorwww.frugalsworld.com

[Guest enave]

wow. This is interesting reading. I had no idea it was that rough on you guys. What about the flight attendants? Do they burn out as fast as the pilots?

[Guest]

enave,I guess "rough" would have to be defined by the guy "roughing it"....hehe. We definitely don't exist on Ramen and grape juice (for the most part), but damn near everyone forgets that almost all of us, at one point in our climb to the top, did exactly that. My stint at the "commuter" airline in the '80s had me as number 7 on the seniority list of over 100 pilots, and I was making about 20K per year. Of course, those were 1982 dollars, but I spent lots of days becoming intimately familiar with Skippy's peanut butter and crackers....LOL. I've had to go as far as remind some cabin crewmembers that "we didn't answer an ad in the newspaper to get this job as a pilot...it took most of us around TEN YEARS of paying dues before we could even apply for the job...then, there's no guarentee you'll get it" That usually gets the "thousand yard stare" back from those that haven't paid those kinds of dues. I don't care where you came from to get to the pilot's seat of a "big iron" airplane...you've had to sweat some to get there.AFA flight attendants burning out? Yeah, it happens a lot. They (at times) have the worst job in the entire airline industry, and can be amoung the lowest paid. Theirs is not an easy existence, but where else can one "see the world" right out of high school, and not be wearing a military uniform? It's definitely not for everyone.take care,BBall--------------------------Capt. William "BBall" BallBoeing 757, Northwest AirlinesSenior Editorwww.frugalsworld.com