Virgin Atlantic?

Literally should be :
Name of Airline
Aircraft Type
Position
Salary
Days Off
Trips per month
Anything else interesting

KLM,
777/787
relief fo
750h
75.000gross +42%pension ectra
14days off average
3,5 trip
LOL is really good

-hotels could be better

Southwest
B-737 Captain
490 hours block
98 days worked plus 4 paid recurrent training days
$235,000 plus $35,000 to pension fund
Expect an additional 10-12% ($23,000-$27000) profit sharing added to pension fund

Note: I gave away trips. Base pay for a Captain is higher than my earnings.

German LCC RHS A320
first year FO
56000 before tax and roughly +6000 flight pay/away from base pay. No overtime, 400hrs on a fulltime contract

my net will be around $217k on $335k gross. I live in California. The state of California got about 30% of those taxes paid and the federal government got the other 70%. California is a high-tax state. The tax numbers are just an estimate at this point (will file my tax return in the spring), but should be pretty close.

The federal government provides health care for cheap after you turn 65. Somehow this doesn’t get everybody mad about “socialized medicine,” which is a good thing I guess.

It will vary quite a bit from person to person. As you make more, the percentage increases. If you’re single, most narrowbody FO’s will be in the ~25% tax bracket. You pay less if you’re married, and even less if you have children.

Some (not all) states impose a state tax as well. Likewise, some cities like NYC will also tax its residents.

Other things you do (or don’t do) will change your tax liability.

What is the pension like and how does it work?

US airlines used to have “defined benefit” pension plans where the company promised to put money away for you and you’d get a certain amount of money each month until both you and your spouse died. That was taken away in bankruptcy court after 9/11.

Currently the major airlines are putting 15-16 cents for every dollar you make into a retirement fund that is owned by you. There are rules that apply to how you can use that money, but essentially you can’t touch it until age 65 unless you want to take a big penalty and pay a bunch of taxes on the disbursement.

So if my gross pay for a month is $10,000, the company deposits another $1,000 in my retirement fund (created by section 401(k) of the tax code, so commonly called a 401(k) account).

The deposits are pre-tax, the money is managed by either you or a professional investment company, and the money is taxed as you withdraw it in retirement.

Thanks. Some quick calculations show that the amount in a uk pilot pension isn’t that different to you guys (assuming major uk and major us). But your salaries are frustratingly, significantly higher and I always wonder how that became the case. And how your companies still make big profits with such pay for the workforce.

Good questions. I suppose it comes down to supply and demand, but it sure seemed like there were enough applicants for the majors before the current big union contracts.

The real pressure was at the lower rungs of the industry where people just weren’t willing to work for the peanuts that were being offered. Around 2013 retirements kicked back in after the 5-year lull due to the mandatory retirement age going from 60-65, and at the same time the 1500 hour rule also kicked in (even first officers need to now have at least 1500 hours). The regionals had to increase pay to attract and keep pilots. I guess those increasing wages pushed wages up further up the career ladder.

This is pretty accurate, except after earning $10,000, the company would put $1,500 into the retirement fund. The only airlines I’m aware of that still have a pension plan are Fedex and UPS. They’re at the top of our compensation ladder.

It does make you stop and think when you hear a manager say “you guys are our largest expense”, doesn’t it?

Oops! Right.

KLM
FO 777 (since june 2019. FO737 before that)

2019= €187.465
3 to 4 trips a month; company pays 45% pension contribution, aiming for retirement at 58.

Flown 680hrs last year.

what’s the point of your post? The times of the low regional pilot pay in the US was definitely made worse by the supply and demand, which I think Europe is seeing now. I doubt you’ll ever see regional wages in the US going back that much. Even in a downturn.

having been unemployed on both sides of the pond, I can tell you it’s equally painful on both sides. That said, in Europe it’s often misunderstood that there is actually an unemployment benefit in the US. It’s changed a lot in Europe too. In Germany (for example) you receive a lot less and for a shorter time, than was historically received. In France it might still be the best place to be unemployed... I’m not sure. In any case, I don’t find much value in your post and I’m wondering if I misunderstood your point. I wish the best for pilots everywhere! Let us all see improvements in our profession.

12 yr wide body FO cargo US. Gross $339k (includes company $33k into retirement and per diem) worked 13 days a month. I worked some extra trips when called... which they did call.

This guy gets it. Gelukkig Nieuwjaar!

There is a saying, “Once you’ve lived in more than one place, you’re not happy anywhere.” When I’m in the US, I miss things back in Europe. When I’m in Europe, I miss things in the states. There are parts of society in both places that are fantastic and enviable. I won’t go into my preferences, but I’ll say both sides have their advantages.

I used to say we both have stability and the rule of law, but that’s now a bit crazy! Austria has has some right wing nuts, the UK is going through a bit of what the US is going through. And France is... well, France! It’s crazy times!

Also worth bearing in mind c.10-11 years ago the USD/GBP fx rate was c.2.1/1 on what was then considerably lower salaries across the board in the US combined with considerable furloughs/uncertainty.

As somebody else alluded to; element of apples and oranges and I remain hopeful the pendulum will swing back a bit at some point!

But they are incorrect. We’d all like it to be.. but the reality is that it’s market forces and a shortage of pilots is the only thing that will drive up the remuneration

easyJet
RHS A320 regional base
Net pay for 2019 was £45K however I only started getting sector pay midway into the year so the tax year (Apr 19- Apr 20) will be nearer to £49K
720 hours
No nightstops