Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2018
53-2012 Commercial Pilots
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.
National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation
National estimates for this occupation: Top
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Mean wage
RSE (3) |
| 37,870 |
2.9 % |
(4) |
$96,530 |
3.2 % |
Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$44,660 |
$61,950 |
$82,240 |
$115,280 |
$160,480 |
(4)
Industry profile for this occupation: Top
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Nonscheduled Air Transportation |
12,320 |
27.33 |
(4) |
$94,450 |
| Technical and Trade Schools |
4,420 |
3.28 |
(4) |
$86,480 |
| Support Activities for Air Transportation |
4,140 |
1.91 |
(4) |
$96,610 |
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services |
3,890 |
1.26 |
(4) |
$85,760 |
| Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing |
1,180 |
0.24 |
(4) |
$122,530 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Nonscheduled Air Transportation |
12,320 |
27.33 |
(4) |
$94,450 |
| Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Other |
680 |
22.37 |
(4) |
$88,540 |
| Technical and Trade Schools |
4,420 |
3.28 |
(4) |
$86,480 |
| Support Activities for Air Transportation |
4,140 |
1.91 |
(4) |
$96,610 |
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services |
3,890 |
1.26 |
(4) |
$85,760 |
Top paying industries for this occupation:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Support Activities for Water Transportation |
140 |
0.15 |
(4) |
$143,810 |
| Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing |
80 |
0.02 |
(4) |
$142,360 |
| Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities |
170 |
0.02 |
(4) |
$127,170 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services |
120 |
0.02 |
(4) |
$126,790 |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$123,640 |
Geographic profile for this occupation: Top
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in this occupation:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
4,800 |
0.40 |
1.51 |
(4) |
$104,680 |
| Florida |
4,170 |
0.48 |
1.85 |
(4) |
$110,540 |
| California |
3,380 |
0.20 |
0.76 |
(4) |
$97,720 |
| Ohio |
1,740 |
0.32 |
1.23 |
(4) |
$88,830 |
| Arizona |
1,410 |
0.51 |
1.93 |
(4) |
$80,000 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:
Top paying States for this occupation:
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
2,840 |
0.80 |
3.04 |
(4) |
$109,130 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
1,890 |
0.73 |
2.79 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,510 |
0.25 |
0.94 |
(4) |
$102,070 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
1,010 |
0.11 |
0.41 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
960 |
0.47 |
1.79 |
(4) |
$82,230 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
810 |
0.66 |
2.53 |
(4) |
$80,830 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
690 |
0.35 |
1.32 |
(4) |
$126,200 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
560 |
0.12 |
0.46 |
(4) |
$107,640 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
540 |
0.37 |
1.40 |
(4) |
$94,930 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI |
530 |
0.27 |
1.02 |
(4) |
$80,000 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Houma-Thibodaux, LA |
320 |
3.77 |
14.41 |
(4) |
$76,290 |
| Savannah, GA |
400 |
2.26 |
8.63 |
(4) |
$126,330 |
| Anchorage, AK |
380 |
2.20 |
8.39 |
(4) |
$92,150 |
| Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL |
90 |
1.78 |
6.79 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Pueblo, CO |
100 |
1.73 |
6.63 |
(4) |
$84,530 |
| Flagstaff, AZ |
100 |
1.68 |
6.41 |
(4) |
$66,450 |
| Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL |
310 |
1.59 |
6.08 |
(4) |
$59,770 |
| Ann Arbor, MI |
330 |
1.50 |
5.75 |
(4) |
$72,590 |
| Grand Forks, ND-MN |
60 |
1.27 |
4.86 |
(4) |
$69,460 |
| Sioux Falls, SD |
190 |
1.24 |
4.73 |
(4) |
$63,380 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort, SC |
60 |
0.75 |
2.87 |
(4) |
$128,600 |
| Savannah, GA |
400 |
2.26 |
8.63 |
(4) |
$126,330 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
690 |
0.35 |
1.32 |
(4) |
$126,200 |
| Bakersfield, CA |
100 |
0.33 |
1.28 |
(4) |
$120,550 |
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO |
40 |
0.18 |
0.68 |
(4) |
$119,660 |
| Spartanburg, SC |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$115,310 |
| Lake Charles, LA |
110 |
0.95 |
3.64 |
(4) |
$113,190 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
(4) |
$112,350 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD |
140 |
0.10 |
0.38 |
(4) |
$112,170 |
| Wilmington, NC |
30 |
0.25 |
0.95 |
(4) |
$111,560 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:
About May 2018 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(4) Wages for some occupations that do not generally work year-round, full time, are reported either as hourly wages or annual salaries
depending on how they are typically paid.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OES estimates and related information:
May 2018 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2018 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2018 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2018 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2018 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 29, 2019
United States Department of Labor
