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Our customers have been hired by:

“The jobs are there,” they say.

“Good pilots are hard to find,” they say.

But if you’re like many pilots, you may have already sent out hundreds of job applications and never heard back. Don’t despair. Try our tried-and-true pilot resume guide, and you’ll take your career to new heights in no time.

This guide will show you: 

  • A pilot resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
  • How to write a pilot resume that will land you more interviews.
  • Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a pilot resume.
  • How to describe your experience on a resume for a pilot to get any job you want.

Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.

Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.

Looking for good veteran jobs, or maybe interested in other jobs in transportation? Check out these guides:

Sample Airline Pilot Resume

Jasmine Srivastava

Certified Commercial Airline Pilot

jasmine.srivastava@gmail.com

(929) 292-9292

linkedin.com/in/jasminesrivastava

Summary of Qualifications

Safety-oriented commercial airline pilot with over 4 years of experience with medium-haul and long-haul flights. FAA ATP certificate. Total: 3500, PiC: 500, X-Country: 100, Night: 100. Rated on Airbus A320neo and Boeing B737 MAX. Seeking to move from domestic US travel to international flights as the new long-haul airline pilot for Lufthansa.

Work Experience

Airline Pilot — First Officer
June 2017–July 2019
jetBlue Airways, Long Island City, NY & JFK International Airport, NY

Key Qualifications & Responsibilities

  • Worked with second in command to ensure safe, timely, and comfortable flights and great passenger experience.
  • Ensured health and safety standards were maintained throughout the flight according to international policies and airline regulations.
  • Communicated effectively with second officer, air traffic control, airline personnel, and cabin crew.
  • Conducted checks on operational equipment, navigational controls, fuel levels, and communication tools to guarantee problem-free flights.

Key Achievements

  • Won “Friendliest Pilot” award from the passengers of jetBlue in 2018.

Cargo Pilot — Second Officer
June 2015–June 2017
FedEx Express, Memphis, TN

Key Qualifications & Responsibilities

  • Flew regular cargo flights between Memphis and New York City, Memphis and Los Angeles, and Memphis and Dallas.
  • Supported the Pilot in Command (Officer in Command) as the Second in Command, performing full piloting duties when necessary.
  • Ensured all safety protocols and standards were met before, during, and after each flight.

Education

Airline Career Pilot Program

ATP Flight School, MacArthur Airport (ISP), Ronkonkoma, NY

Completion: 2015

Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics & Aviation

Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology, Flushing, NY

Graduation: 2013

Relevant Coursework: Airline Management, Flight Health & Safety, Aviation Maintenance Management, Aviation Operations Management, Airport Administration, Aviation Law, FAA Regulations, History of Flight, International Weather & Climate Systems.

Key Skills

  • Advanced Mathematics & Physics
  • Modern Aviation & Aircraft Technology
  • Teamwork & Collaborative Skills
  • Excellent Communication Skills
  • Spatial Awareness
  • Hand-Eye Coordination
  • Management & Leadership Skills
  • Ability to Remain Calm Under Pressure

Certifications

  • FAA Airline Transport Pilot Certificate
  • Commercial Certificate with Instrument and Multi-Engine Ratings
  • Certified Flight Instructor (CFI)
  • Certified Flight Instructor Instrument Rating (CFII)
  • Integrated Airman Certification and Rating Application (IACRA)
  • FAA Aviation Medical Certificate

Flight Time & Ratings

  • Total flight time: 3500 hours
  • As Pilot in Command: 500 hours
  • As Second in Command: 1000 hours
  • X-Country: 100+ hours
  • Nighttime: 100+ hours
  • Plane types: Airbus A320neo, Boeing B737 MAX

Airline Transport Pilot

- Airplane Multiengine Land And Sea

Commercial Privileges

- Airplane Single Engine Land And Sea

Memberships

  • The Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA)
  • Women in Aviation International (WAI)

Languages

  • Hindi: Native Proficiency
  • Malayalam: Limited Working Proficiency

An aircraft pilot is a person responsible for a plane and its flight, including navigation, directional control, and communications. An airline pilot resume needs to talk up your cockpit experience, flight hours, plane ratings, aviation skills, and aircraft education.

Above was our take of a perfect sample pilot resume. Let’s make yours just as awesome—

Here’s how to write a pilot resume as solid as your flight skills:

1. Choose the Best Format for Your Airline Pilot Resume

The Delta Air Lines slogan is “Keep Climbing.” Want your airline career to keep climbing?

Then—

It all starts with formatting your aviation resume template in an organized, easy-to-understand way.

Here’s how to format a pilot resume template:

Pro Tip: Save your resume format in PDF, unless the airline pilot job description explicitly requests one as a Microsoft Word document.

2. Write An Airline Resume Objective or Summary Statement

An airline pilot resume objective or summary, also called a resume profile, is a short paragraph introducing you to them, like an elevator pitch.

It gives airline employers a short introduction into your flight experience, aviation skills, and airline background.

Are you a seasoned veteran of the friendly skies? Choose the resume career summary.

The summary statement on a resume for airline jobs promotes you by listing your flying achievements, aircraft skills, and airline employment history.

New to this particular level of pilot work? Choose the resume career objective.

The airline pilot resume objective offers your flight career goals instead of your history, but it also gives a numbered accomplishment to prove you’re top gun.

Pro Tip: Write the heading statement last, because it’s easier to choose the best inclusions when the rest of the airline pilot resume is written first.

3. Create the Pilot Job Description for an Airline Resume


Whether writing a resume for FedEx pilot jobs or Delta Air Lines careers, the relevant work experience on your pilot resume needs to be listed correctly.

So—

Here’s how to write a pilot job description on an aviation resume:

  • Go in reverse-chronological order, placing your most recent job first.
  • Add your job title at the top of each entry, then the dates you were employed, and the company name and location.
  • Provide 5 or 6 bullet points detailing the most impressive aspects of your flight responsibilities.
  • Use power verbs (e.g., navigated, coordinated, etc.) to start each bullet point.
  • Add one or two achievements you’re proud of, using numbers, to prove you’re as awesome as your resume suggests.

Pro Tip: Tailor your resume to this one specific airline and pilot job. Generic resumes get tossed in the bin immediately.

4. Make Your Pilot Resume Education Section Soar

Next stop: listing education on a resume.

Keep these rules in mind to get it right:

  • List your most advanced degree first, then the one before it, in reverse-chronological order.
  • Add your major, the school name and location, graduation date, and any coursework relevant to aviation jobs.
  • Don’t add high school on a pilot resume, unless you don’t have a completed college degree.

Pro Tip: Your pilot flight school experience is more important than a bachelor’s degree for pilot jobs (though you usually need a bachelor’s degree, as well). So, add your flight school program first, followed by any traditional university courses beneath.

5. Highlight Your Pilot Skills on an Aviation Resume

Airline and commercial pilot jobs are projected to increase by 4% between 2016–2026. That’s 4,400 new aviators challenging you for this job.

So—

Impress the airline by listing the right aviation resume skills and piloting abilities for this airline job:

Pilot Skills for Resumes—Examples

But, one thing—

Remember to tailor your pilot resume (like we mentioned earlier).

That means you can’t just take our list or any list of aviation skills off the internet and put it straight into your resume for pilot jobs.

Rather, here’s what to do:

  • Write down all of the professional skills you possess which are related to being a commercial pilot.
  • Include a healthy mix of both soft and hard skills.
  • Look at the job responsibilities in the pilot job ad to find the best resume keywords.
  • If there’s a match, add it to your private pilot resume or corporate pilot resume.
  • Stick to the wording they use in the job ad to be as safe as possible when it comes to any ATS. The ATS (applicant tracking system) is software which reads your resume first, and if they don’t understand what you wrote, no job.

We’ve analyzed over 11 million resumes created using our builder, and we’ve discovered that:

  • Pilots usually list common skills such as decision-making, strong leadership abilities, professionalism, language fluency, and team building.
  • Resumes for Pilots are, on average, 2 pages long.

Creating a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide and use content from Certified Professional Resume Writers to have a resume ready in minutes.

When you’re done, our free resume builder will score your resume and our resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Add Other Sections to Your Airline Pilot Resume

You know that awe you feel as you fly during a gray, rainy day and finally break through the clouds? Your pilot resume should be just like that, an epiphany, far above the other pilot candidates.

And extra resume sections give exactly that effect.

Here are great additions for a resume for piloting and airline jobs:

Pilot Resume Examples—Extra Sections

For flight hours, there are several factors you may include on a pilot resume template:

Pilot Resumes Examples—Flight Hours

  • Total flight time (in hours)
  • Flight hours as Pilot in Command
  • Flight hours as Second in Command
  • Flight hours on plane model type
  • Flight hours on cross-country (“x-country”) trips
  • Flight hours during nighttime travel
  • Turbojet hours
  • Turboprop hours
  • Instructor pilot hours

Pro Tip: Unlike resumes for other vocations, pilot resumes must be sent with supporting documentation. This will include your licenses, copies of your flight ratings, passport, medical records, and more.

7. Attach a Pilot Cover Letter to Your Airline Resume


How important are cover letters for airline jobs? Well, half of employers believe that a resume without a pilots cover letter is like an engine failure—

Your prospective job will crash and burn.

Here’s how to write a pilot covering letter they’ll appreciate:

  • Figure out the covering letter format before writing begins.
  • Start with a compelling cover letter intro.
  • Show them why you’re the best pilot for the job.
  • Explain that this job is perfect for you.
  • Add key, quantifiable achievements to seal the deal.
  • Close with a cover letter ending including a strong call to action.

Pro Tip: Don’t forget to follow up on your application by sending them an email after waiting at least a week. While you’re waiting, prepare for the interview!

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

That’s it—

Now THAT’S a pilot resume as impressive as Sully himself!

Got any questions on our sample pilot resume? Not sure how to list your flight hours, pilot instructor certifications, or aircraft ratings? Get at us in the comments below, and thanks for reading!

About Zety’s Editorial Process

This article has been reviewed by our editorial team to make sure it follows Zety's editorial guidelines. We’re committed to sharing our expertise and giving you trustworthy career advice tailored to your needs. High-quality content is what brings over 40 million readers to our site every year. But we don't stop there. Our team conducts original research to understand the job market better, and we pride ourselves on being quoted by top universities and prime media outlets from around the world.

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Christian Eilers, CPRW
Christian is a career expert and Certified Professional Resume Writer. His guides cover every aspect of the career spectrum, from job hunting and acing interviews to settling in on the first days of a new career. With Christian's guidance, job seekers can navigate the job market with confidence and make the most of their career opportunities.
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