EXTRA PAY (overtime, bonus, incentives) earned above base pay in overall industry
Show me the money
Speaking of more money, it should be no surprise that helicopter pilots are attracted to the idea of bigger paychecks and better retirement plans. In every single salary and benefits survey we have conducted since 2014, when asked the question: “As an employee of a helicopter operator, which attributes of the job are most important to you?” By a large margin the top answer is always salary. In this survey it was no different, with 84% of respondents choosing salary as being most important to them.
INSIGHT: Anecdotally, although it appears that overall gross pay has been rising for helicopter pilots, for a majority of them, their pay is not growing from raises in base salary alone, but often from working more hours in the form of overtime.
Key Drivers
In early 2020 (pre-pandemic) we saw an upward shift in median salaries for certain groups of helicopter pilots. This was the result of the continuation of a tightening labor market during 2019. Competition for supply came from both the military, who were letting fewer pilots out, and the airlines successfully attracting experienced helicopter pilots from both civil and military ranks.
However, by mid-2020 as COVID-19 swept the globe, the pendulum swung in the opposite direction faster than we had ever experienced in our industry’s history. With global travel bans, the airlines began furloughing pilots, at which point former helicopter pilots came running back to the industry they had fled just a short time ago. In a matter of just a few months, the pilot supply-demand status went from a critical shortage to a near-equilibrium situation for most helicopter operators.
As fast as the pendulum swung in one direction, it clearly swung again the opposite way as travel restrictions were lifted and global travel ramped back up. The airlines have brought back the furloughed pilots and are on the hunt again. They have been successfully poaching helicopter pilots from our industry with the lure of more money.
The difference between the past and now is that in the past, helicopter pilots really had nowhere to go to earn higher salaries than what was being offered in the industry. That has changed.
So the next philosophical questions that should be asked are: Can the helicopter industry generally compete against the airlines with respect to pay? If not, given the current supply situation, could the growth of the industry as a whole be stunted due to a shortage of helicopter pilots? If so, what can the industry actually do about it?
Gross Salary ranges by position POSITION
LOW
Instructor Pilots
Line Pilots Lead Pilots Chief Pilots
Training/Check Airman
<45K (47%) <45K (3%) 70-80K (2%) 45-50K (10%) MEDIAN
HIGH 90-100K (13%) 130-150K (7%) 90-110K (28%) >175K (5%) 110-130K (33%) >175K (14%) 110-130K (24%) >175K (19%) 100-110K (6%) 130-150K (31%) >175K (25%) Director of Ops 100-110K (11%) 130-150K (11%) >175K (67%)
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