Think pilots make money hand over fist? Think again. Garrett Ray, a commercial pilot flying out of New York, recently shared his actual earnings—and the numbers come with a big asterisk.
While his hourly rate of $213.97 as a first officer sounds impressive, the reality is far from a typical 9-to-5 job. Pilots are only paid for flight time, not the hours spent waiting between trips. Ray’s JFK-to-Phoenix route, for instance, pays him for 10 hours in the air but leaves him stranded in Arizona for a full day before returning. That’s 40 hours away from home with only a fraction of it actually compensated.
To make the most of his time, Ray now prioritizes efficient routes. A recent deadhead flight—where he hitched a ride to Dallas before piloting a return trip—earned him $1,556 in just over seven hours of work. “This is a phenomenal scenario,” he said. “Yeah, I had to wake up early, but I was home by 3 p.m.”
On average, Ray works 80 flight hours a month, bringing in around $17,109. If he moves up to captain, that rate could skyrocket to $350 per hour, or $27,199 monthly. But until then, the job is more about smart scheduling than nonstop paydays.
