What do they do?

Pilot and navigate the flight of fixed-wing aircraft on nonscheduled air carrier routes, or helicopters. Requires Commercial Pilot certificate. Includes charter pilots with similar certification, and air ambulance and air tour pilots. Excludes regional, national, and international airline pilots.

Also known as:

Air Ambulance Captain, Air Tour Pilot, Captain, Charter Pilot, Check Airman, Commercial Charter Pilot, Commercial Helicopter Pilot, Commercial Pilot, Copilot, Corporate Pilot, EMS Helicopter Pilot (Emergency Medical Service Helicopter Pilot), EMS Pilot (Emergency Medical Services Pilot), EMS Rotary Wing Pilot (Emergency Medical Service Rotary Wing Pilot), First Officer, Fixed Wing Pilot, Helicopter Pilot, Line Pilot, Pilot

Typical Wages

Wages$0$60K$120K$180K$240K$300KPercentiles10th25thMedian75th90th$56k$79k$113k$168k$239k

Projected Growth Rate

As fast as average

Employment of Commercial Pilots is projected to grow 5 percent from 2022 to 2032, about as fast as average compared to all occupations.

Projected Employment in OH

No Data Available
Employment202220324,3204,540
  • 5.1%

    Change

    Ranks #46 in job growth rate
    520

    Job Openings

    Ranks #8 in net job growth

Best colleges for Commercial Pilots

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Colleges with the most graduates that become Commercial Pilots

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Education Level

Percent of workers in this field with these degrees:

  • Bachelor's degree  (59%)
  • Master's degree  (15%)
  • Some college, no degree  (11%)
  • Associate's degree  (8%)
  • High school diploma equivalent  (5%)
  • Doctorate or Professional Degree  (2%)
  • Less than high school diploma  (<1%)

Typical College Majors

Most Popular Majors that prepare Commercial Pilots

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People in this career often have these skills:

  • Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
  • Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
  • Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
  • Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

People in this career often know a lot about:

  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
  • Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
  • Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
  • Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
  • Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
  • Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

People in this career often have talent in:

  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
  • Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
  • Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
  • Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Selective Attention - The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
  • Response Orientation - The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
  • Reaction Time - The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
  • Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
  • Depth Perception - The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Spatial Orientation - The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
  • Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
  • Rate Control - The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
  • Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Time Sharing - The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
  • Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
  • Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Manual Dexterity - The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

People in this career often do these activities:

  • Inspect aircraft or aircraft components.
  • Pilot aircraft.
  • Choose optimal transportation routes or speeds.
  • Monitor engine operation or functioning.
  • Resolve issues affecting transportation operations.
  • Communicate with others to coordinate vehicle movement.
  • Plan flight operations.
  • Inspect cargo to ensure it is properly loaded or secured.
  • Review work orders or schedules to determine operations or procedures.
  • Test performance of aircraft equipment.
  • Record operational details of travel.
  • Coordinate flight control or management activities.
  • Assist others during emergencies.
  • Arrange maintenance activities.
  • Maintain vehicles in good working condition.
  • Direct passenger or freight transport activities.
  • Train transportation or material moving personnel.
  • Evaluate performance of applicants, trainees, or employees.

This page includes data from:

O*NET OnLine Career data: O*NET 29.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (“USDOL/ETA”). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Logo Occupation statistics: USDOL U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics

careeronestop logo Videos: CareerOneStop, USDOL/ETA and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development

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