Private jet pilot salaries remain strong amid growing demand for aviators

Salaries in private aviation can be structured as annual salaries or daily rates. For example:

- NetJets pays first officers starting at $65,283 per year for their first year (working an average of 13 days per month), while captains with 17 years' experience can earn up to $293,960 annually.

- Wheels Up offers new first officers on turboprops $70,000 per year in their first year; captains operating heavy jets after three decades can make up to $357,285 yearly.

- Flexjet compensates first officers at $513 per day initially; captains flying Challenger 350s after 18 years receive up to $1,276 daily.

- JSX starts first officers at $160 per day with over 1,000 total hours logged; top captains after ten years earn up to $822 daily.

Private jet operators tend not to use hourly pay as frequently as airlines do. Schedules also vary widely: Wheels Up uses eight-days-on/six-days-off rosters; JSX guarantees line-holding pilots at least 14 days off monthly; NetJets offers several schedule options ranging from seven days on/seven off to averages of up to nineteen days worked each month.

Benefits packages including healthcare and retirement plans are common among these employers. Homebasing—where pilots live near any commercial airport rather than reporting consistently to one location—is often available.

The unpredictability inherent in private aviation means that pilots may not know their destinations ahead of time—a contrast with most airline operations where trips are planned in advance through monthly bidding systems. While this lack of predictability may not suit everyone’s preferences regarding stability or lifestyle consistency—major US airlines generally offer greater job security due largely to union representation—the compensation offered by some high-profile individual owners can be even higher than industry averages: salaries upwards of $300,000 or more have been reported in rare cases.

Industry observers note that recent years have seen substantial improvements in pilot pay across both commercial airlines and private aviation due largely to ongoing shortages of qualified aviators nationwide.

"Airline flying is often viewed as the top industry for pilots to work in given the schedules high pay and the glamour of piloting some of the world's largest aircraft. However operators in the private jet world offer salaries that are extremely competitive with commercial aviation in many cases and while the trips are far different than anything an airline pilot flies schedules are also competitive."

"The reality is that pilot jobs in general come with good paychecks in many cases. The 2010s and 2020s also saw companies across the aviation industry drastically improve salaries and schedules in response to a shortage of pilots in the US. As such the time has never been better to work as a pilot whether at an airline or in private aviation."