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Date: 05/15/2025

Commercial Pilots

Pilot and navigate the flight of fixed-wing aircraft on nonscheduled air carrier routes, or helicopters. Requires Commercial Pilot certificate. Includes charter pilots with similar certification, and air ambulance and air tour pilots. Excludes regional, national, and international airline pilots.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Use instrumentation to pilot aircraft when visibility is poor.
    • Plan and formulate flight activities and test schedules and prepare flight evaluation reports.
    • Perform minor aircraft maintenance and repair work, or arrange for major maintenance.
    • Coordinate flight activities with ground crews and air traffic control, and inform crew members of flight and test procedures.
    • Fly with other pilots or pilot-license applicants to evaluate their proficiency.
    • Rescue and evacuate injured persons.
    • Obtain and review data such as load weights, fuel supplies, weather conditions, and flight schedules to determine flight plans and identify needed changes.
    • Teach company regulations and procedures to other pilots.
    • Choose routes, altitudes, and speeds that will provide the fastest, safest, and smoothest flights.
    • File instrument flight plans with air traffic control so that flights can be coordinated with other air traffic.
    • Monitor engine operation, fuel consumption, and functioning of aircraft systems during flights.
    • Start engines, operate controls, and pilot airplanes to transport passengers, mail, or freight according to flight plans, regulations, and procedures.
    • Order changes in fuel supplies, loads, routes, or schedules to ensure safety of flights.
    • Contact control towers for takeoff clearances, arrival instructions, and other information, using radio equipment.
    • Perform minor aircraft maintenance and repair work, or arrange for major maintenance.
    • Check aircraft prior to flights to ensure that the engines, controls, instruments, and other systems are functioning properly.
    • Write specified information in flight records, such as flight times, altitudes flown, and fuel consumption.
    • Consider airport altitudes, outside temperatures, plane weights, and wind speeds and directions to calculate the speed needed to become airborne.
    • Supervise other crew members.
    • Plan flights according to government and company regulations, using aeronautical charts and navigation instruments.
    • Co-pilot aircraft or perform captain's duties, as required.
    • Conduct in-flight tests and evaluations at specified altitudes and in all types of weather to determine the receptivity and other characteristics of equipment and systems.
    • Request changes in altitudes or routes as circumstances dictate.
    • Plan and formulate flight activities and test schedules and prepare flight evaluation reports.
    • Check baggage or cargo to ensure that it has been loaded correctly.
    • Instruct other pilots and student pilots in aircraft operations.

    Skills

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    4
    Workplace Documents
    5
    Graphic Literacy
    4

    Abilities

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    Knowledge

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

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    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 98800/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 4,540
    • Yearly Projected Openings 520

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Integrity
    • Self Control
    • Adaptability/Flexibility

    Tools

    • Adjustable widemouth pliers
    • Aerospace cockpit display panels
    • Aerospace head up display HUDs
    • Aircraft anti skid controls
    • Aircraft braking systems
    • Aircraft communication systems
    • Aircraft cooling fans
    • Aircraft deicing equipment
    • Aircraft environment controllers
    • Aircraft environment regulators
    • Aircraft escape or ejection systems
    • Aircraft fire control or extinguishing systems
    • Aircraft flight simulators or trainers
    • Aircraft fuel management systems
    • Aircraft guidance systems
    • Aircraft hydraulic systems
    • Aircraft navigation beacons
    • Aircraft onboard defrosting or defogging systems
    • Aircraft oxygen equipment
    • Aircraft power supply units
    • Aircraft steering controls
    • Aircraft warning systems
    • Airships
    • Anemometers
    • Area lighting
    • Battery chargers
    • Desktop computers
    • Fire extinguishers
    • Flight computer systems
    • Frequency analyzers
    • Gas generators
    • Hard hats
    • Landing gear assemblies
    • Locking pliers
    • Multimeters
    • Notebook computers
    • Personal computers
    • Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers
    • Plotter printers
    • Pocket calculator
    • Reflective apparel or accessories
    • Specialty wrenches
    • Tablet computers
    • Traffic cones or delineators

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Aviation ground support software
    • Calendar and scheduling software
    • Charting software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Development environment software
    • Flight control software
    • Graphics or photo imaging software
    • Information retrieval or search software
    • Map creation software
    • Office suite software
    • Project management software
    • Route navigation software

    Tags

    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.

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