British Airways pilot recruitment

Pay and conditions, as pilots report them

Figures reported by pilots, not confirmed by the airline, each one dated (last update: June 2026). For information only.

• Captain (BA Mainline): about £99,900 a year at the bottom of the scale, up to about £223,300 on long haul and £189,300 on short haul, before tax (August 2025).
• First officer: about £74,900 a year at the bottom of the scale, up to about £167,500 on long haul and £142,000 on short haul, before tax (August 2025).
• Speedbird Pilot Academy (company-funded training): basic pay of about £36,800 in year 1, up to £67,200 in year 5 (November 2025).
• Allowances: about £19 per flying hour, around £14,200 a year for an average 713 hours, plus £4.86 per hour away from base (August 2025).
• Pension: 6% from the pilot and 15% from the company, plus 0.6%, 21.6% in total (March 2023).
• Rosters: seniority-based bidding, junior pilots work more weekends; since winter 2025, at least 3 days off after a long-haul trip of 3 days or more, and 86 hours off after a 5-day short-haul block (December 2025).
• Leave: 6 weeks plus wrap days, and 12 "golden days" a year; parental leave on top (November 2025).
• Career: command on short haul in 3 to 5 years, 18 years or more on long haul; under 2 years at BA Euroflyer in Gatwick (December 2025).
• Hiring: A320 first officers sought and some A320neo captain positions; entry through SSP closed until 2027, newly qualified pilots go through the Speedbird Pilot Academy. Outlook described as positive (June 2026).
• First officer profile: at least 500 hours with A320 experience for short haul, 1,500 hours on a ZFTT-qualifying aircraft for long haul; otherwise BA Euroflyer from 100 sectors and 500 hours (August 2024).
• Selection: online application, recorded video interview, then capacity and spatial reasoning tests, group exercise, interview and simulator (August 2024).

Reports published on pilotjobsnetwork.com