PilotResume Example & Writing Guide (2026)
A pilot resume is read differently from every other resume. A recruiter does not start at your summary — they start at your certificates, your medical class, and your hours table, and they decide in about fifteen seconds whether you clear the posting minimums. Everything else on the page only matters after those numbers pass.
That is why the hours table is the single most important design decision on the document. Total time alone tells a recruiter almost nothing. They need the breakdown: pilot-in-command, second-in-command, multi-engine, turbine, instrument (actual and simulated), night, and cross-country, with the numbers current as of a stated date. A resume that buries those figures in prose forces someone to do arithmetic, and that resume loses to the one that laid them out in a clean block.
This page gives you a complete pilot resume example, a writing guide covering certificates and ratings (ATP, CPL, CFI/CFII/MEI), type ratings, medical certificate class, the aircraft-flown list, Part 61 versus 141 versus 135 versus 121 experience, and how to handle your training and check-ride record honestly.
Airlines, regional carriers, charter operators, corporate flight departments, and flight schools all hire from overlapping pilot pools, and candidates who present verified hours, current medical and certificate status, and turbine or multi-engine time in a scannable format consistently move through screening faster.
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Pilot resume example
Professional Summary
Airline Transport Pilot with 3,400 total hours, 1,950 PIC, 1,600 multi-engine, and 1,200 turbine time across Part 121 regional, Part 135 charter, and Part 141 instruction. EMB-145 type rated with First-Class Medical current. Strong instrument background — 210 actual, 180 simulated — and 1,050 hours dual given as a CFI/CFII/MEI. Seeking a major or cargo carrier First Officer position.
Experience
- Fly scheduled Part 121 regional operations as SIC in the EMB-145 across a 40-city network, averaging 75–85 block hours per month
- Completed initial type rating, indoctrination, and two recurrent simulator cycles with all check events passed on schedule
- Operate into high-density Class B airports and mountainous terminal areas, with regular low-visibility and icing-condition operations
- Serve as a CRM and threat-and-error management example for new-hire line observers during initial operating experience
- Flew on-demand Part 135 passenger charter in the Beechcraft King Air 350 throughout the western United States and northern Mexico
- Accumulated 620 turbine hours including 240 as PIC, operating IFR in mountainous and high-density-altitude terrain
- Handled dispatch coordination, weight and balance, performance planning, and international documentation for cross-border legs
- Passed recurrent Part 135.293 and 135.297 check rides on first attempt across two cycles
- Delivered 1,050 hours of dual instruction in an FAA-approved Part 141 curriculum across Cessna 172 (G1000), Piper Seminole, and Redbird AATD
- Recommended 31 students for practical tests with a first-attempt pass rate above 90 percent across private, instrument, and commercial checkrides
- Taught instrument ground school and served as a stage check instructor for the Part 141 instrument course
- Maintained training records and 8710 documentation in compliance with the school's FAA-approved training course outline
Education
Licenses & Certifications
- Airline Transport Pilot — Airplane Multiengine Land; EMB-145 type rating
- Commercial Privileges — Airplane Single-Engine Land
- Certified Flight Instructor — CFI, CFII, MEI (current)
- FAA First-Class Medical Certificate — current, no restrictions
- FCC Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
- Flight hours current as of last logbook entry: 3,400 TT / 1,950 PIC / 1,600 ME / 1,200 turbine / 210 actual instrument / 480 night
Skills
Fictional example for illustration. Use it as a structure to follow, then build your own version free.
How to write a pilot resume
Put certificates, ratings, and medical class in the header block
Directly under your name, build a compact credentials block: your highest certificate (ATP, Commercial, or Private), the ratings attached to it, your instructor certificates, your medical certificate class with its issue or exam date, and any type ratings. Recruiters check these before anything else, and a missing medical class reads as an unanswered question about whether you can legally fly today.
Write ratings the way the FAA writes them — Airline Transport Pilot, Airplane Multiengine Land; Commercial Privileges, Airplane Single-Engine Land — rather than shorthand only you understand. Add your FCC Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit if you hold one, and note passport and unrestricted work authorization for operators flying internationally.
- Certificates: ATP / CPL / PPL with category and class ratings
- Instructor: CFI, CFII, MEI — list all held and current
- Type ratings: exact FAA designation, e.g. EMB-145, CE-525S, BE-300
- Medical: First, Second, or Third Class with date; note if you hold a special issuance
Build the flight-hours table recruiters actually read
Give the hours their own labeled block near the top, formatted as short rows rather than a paragraph, and stamp it with a currency date such as "hours current as of" your most recent logbook entry. Airline and charter recruiters compare your rows directly against posted minimums, so use the standard categories and do not invent your own labels.
Round to whole hours, keep the figures consistent with your logbook because they will be verified, and if a number is low, leave it in rather than omitting it — a missing row reads as a hidden weakness, while a small honest number reads as a pilot who is building time in a known direction.
- Total Time — the headline number
- PIC and SIC, listed separately
- Multi-Engine and Multi-Engine PIC
- Turbine, split into turboprop versus jet if it helps you
- Instrument (actual and simulated, listed separately), Night, Cross-Country, and Dual Given
List aircraft flown and type ratings precisely
Under or beside the hours block, list the aircraft you have flown by make and model, grouped from largest to smallest — jets and turboprops first, then complex piston, then trainers. Include hours in type where the number is meaningful. Chief pilots read this list as a proxy for what you will be comfortable in on day one, and glass versus steam matters, so note avionics suites such as Garmin G1000 or Collins Pro Line where relevant.
Say which regulation part you flew under
Part 61 versus Part 141 training, and Part 91, 135, or 121 operating experience, are not trivia — they describe the structure, oversight, and standardization you have worked inside. A pilot with Part 135 charter time has flown to published operating specifications with dispatch, duty limits, and check rides on a schedule. Say so explicitly for each job, because recruiters use it to judge how much airline standardization will be new to you.
- Flight instruction: note Part 61 or Part 141 and any FAA-approved course you taught
- Charter and cargo: state Part 135, single-pilot or crewed, IFR operations
- Corporate: state Part 91 or 91K, and whether you flew as PIC or SIC
- Airline: state Part 121 with your fleet, seat, and base
Handle your training record honestly, and keep the page parser-safe
Airline applications ask about check-ride failures and training events separately from the resume, and the answers get verified through your records. Do not put a disqualifying-sounding narrative on the resume itself, but never write anything the record will contradict. Keep the resume factual — certificates earned, dates, training programs completed, recurrent and simulator events attended — and save context for the application form and interview. Do list training that shows currency: initial and recurrent ground school, CRM, upset prevention and recovery training, and international procedures.
Most operators ask you to upload the resume into a parser and separately key your hours into their own form, so use a single-column layout, plain text hour rows rather than a graphical table, no photos or logos, and a text-selectable PDF. One page is the expectation for almost every pilot resume, including experienced captains.
Pilotresume skills & ATS keywords
Work these into your summary, experience bullets, and skills section — matching the wording of the job posting. Then run your resume through our free ATS resume checker to confirm they parse.
Hard skills
- Airline Transport Pilot (ATP)
- Commercial Pilot certificate
- Multi-engine land rating
- Instrument rating
- CFI / CFII / MEI
- Type rating
- Turbine time
- PIC and SIC time
- IFR flight operations
- Crew resource management
- Weight and balance / performance planning
- Part 121, 135, 141 and 91 operations
- Glass cockpit avionics (G1000, Pro Line)
Soft skills
- Decision-making under time pressure
- Sterile-cockpit discipline
- Crew communication and briefing
- Situational awareness
- Adherence to standard operating procedures
- Composure in abnormal situations
ATS keywords
Pilot resume mistakes to avoid
Burying flight hours in paragraphs
Recruiters compare your hours against posted minimums line by line. A prose summary forces them to hunt and do math. Put a labeled block near the top with total, PIC, SIC, multi, turbine, instrument, night, and cross-country, stamped with a currency date.
Leaving out the medical certificate class
A resume without a medical class raises the question of whether you can legally fly the job today. State the class and its date, and note a special issuance if you hold one rather than letting the omission look like avoidance.
Not naming the regulation part for each job
Part 91, 135, and 121 describe very different levels of standardization, dispatch, and oversight. Label every position so a chief pilot can judge how much of their operation will be new to you instead of guessing from the company name.
Inflating or rounding hours generously
Hours get verified against your logbook and records during the hiring process. An optimistic number that does not reconcile ends a candidacy on integrity grounds — which is far worse than being 50 hours short of a minimum.
Pilot resume FAQs
What should a pilot resume include?
Start with a credentials block under your name: highest certificate, category and class ratings, instructor certificates, type ratings, and medical certificate class with date. Directly below that, a labeled flight-hours block showing total, PIC, SIC, multi-engine, turbine, instrument (actual and simulated), night, and cross-country, with a currency date. Then list aircraft flown, followed by experience entries that state the regulation part for each job — Part 91, 135, 141, or 121 — plus your fleet, seat, and monthly block hours. Close with education, training completed, and additional qualifications such as an FCC permit or passport.
How do you format flight hours on a pilot resume?
Use short labeled rows in a single-column block rather than a graphical table or a paragraph, because airline application parsers frequently mangle tables. List the standard categories recruiters screen against — Total Time, PIC, SIC, Multi-Engine, Multi-Engine PIC, Turbine, Instrument split into actual and simulated, Night, Cross-Country, and Dual Given if you instruct. Round to whole hours, keep every figure reconciled with your logbook, and add a line stating the date the hours are current through. Do not delete a category because the number is low; a missing row reads as concealment.
Should a pilot resume list check-ride failures?
No — the resume is not the place for it, but never write anything the record will contradict. Airline and charter applications ask about training events and check-ride outcomes directly, and those answers are verified through the FAA records and your training files. Keep the resume factual: certificates, ratings, dates, and training programs completed. Save the explanation for the application form and interview, where a single early setback described plainly, with what you changed in your preparation afterward, is a normal part of the history of many hired pilots.
What is the difference between Part 61, 141, 135, and 121 experience?
Part 61 and Part 141 describe how you were trained: Part 141 schools operate under an FAA-approved course outline with stage checks and structured syllabi, which is why some carriers value it and why R-ATP hour reductions attach to certain programs. Part 91 covers general and corporate operations, Part 135 covers on-demand charter and commuter flying with published operating specifications and recurrent check rides, and Part 121 covers scheduled airline service with dispatch, duty limits, and full standardization. Label each job with its part so recruiters can judge your exposure to structured operations.
How do I write a pilot resume with low flight hours?
Lead with what is complete rather than what is short: your certificates and ratings, your medical class, and the hours block exactly as it stands. Then make the quality of your time visible — complex and multi-engine aircraft, actual instrument conditions, mountainous or high-density-altitude operations, glass cockpit avionics, and any Part 141 structured training. Flight instructing is the standard path, so if you hold a CFI, quantify dual given and student checkride pass rates. Name your training progression and target certificate with timing, which tells a hiring manager where your hours will be in six months.
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