American Airlines pilot reveals earning an eye-popping $458,000 in 2025

An American Airlines pilot’s screenshot of a hefty pay stub went viral in recent days after it revealed an eye-popping $458,000 in total earnings to date this year, leaving many online stunned and shocked.

The Miami-based American Airlines 737 captain shared the pay statement to Reddit last week — later deleted — showing gross earnings of $457,894.51 as of Dec. 15.

The pay statement went viral on social media after it was shared to X by the Breaking Aviation News & Videos account and by AviationCircle on Facebook.

The cheque, for the Nov. 16 to Dec. 1 pay period, also showed $22,154.76 in gross earnings. It hourly pay rates of $361.04 and $363.87 for flights.

Social media shock

The hourly pay stunned and shocked many on social media, with one person calling it “elite money.”

“$458K sounds wild until you realize it’s flight hours only, insane schedules, constant recurrency training, and being responsible for lives at 35,000 feet. Still… that’s elite money,” one X user wrote.

However, another commenter said making that kind of hourly wage is not actually elite at all.

“My plumber bills at $300 an hour,” they wrote. “Lawyers are billing near $3,000. This actually seems low for elite pay.”

High starting pay for captains

According to the Aviationa2z, the starting pay for a new American Airlines captain is approximately $324 per hour while the average pay is around $327 per hour.

Those with years of experience and additional pay factors can earn as much as $469,000 per year.

Many people believe that the earnings are well deserved because of the years of training and hours in the air needed to reach that level of compensation.

“People have Zero idea of how many years/decades it took to achieve that,” one responded.

“Years of simulator training in every type of emergency, one 6 month medical checkup away from unemployment. When weather sucks and the plane is on fire they don’t care how much $$ the pilot makes.”

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Another said airline pilots deserve the high salary based on the type of work they do and training involved.

“Do you know how much time and money it costs to get your pilot’s license and to get to the position of being an airline captain?” one person wrote.

Hours capped for pilots

U.S. regulations say airline pilots are only allowed to fly 1,000 hours over any rolling 365‑day period, Fortune magazine reports.

Other requirements include rest between flights and hours spent doing pre-and post-flight duties, according to a 2022 Flying magazine article.

Airline transport pilots average about 75 to 100 hours per month in the air while also doing 150 hours of other required tasks. For commercial pilots, they average 85 flight hours and 80 ground hours per month. Flight instructors typically spend 80 to 100 flight hours and 100 ground hours per month.

Seniority with an airline and length of flights also plays a significant role among pilots.