Resume template · Updated October 2026
Pilot resume template
Short answer
Leslie suits an airline pilot: the summary states total time, time in type and certificates up front, and work experience prints before skills. The fictional sample is an Embraer 175 first officer at a regional airline with 3,450 total hours, an ATP with a type rating, a first-class medical and two years of flight instructing, with a full flight time breakdown at the end of the page.
Download the pilot sample
Priya is a fictional first officer. Replace every detail with your own before you send it.
The files are made in your browser by Resumity's own exporters, from this sample. The builder opens it as your own resume: click any line to replace it. Free plan, no watermark.
Why Leslie suits a pilot resume
Leslie prints the summary first and work experience straight after it, so totals, certificates and the airline job sit in the top half of the page, where recruiters check minimums. The centred blue name and short blue underlines add one accent while the rest of the page stays plain.
Second choice: Henrietta. Henrietta keeps the same summary-then-experience order in black and grey, for a pilot who wants no colour at all.
What goes in each section, in Leslie's order
Leslie prints its sections in a fixed order, the same in the PDF and the Word file. Here is that order for this sample, and what to put in each section.
- Professional Summary. Lead with the numbers recruiters screen on: total time, time in type, turbine and multi-engine time, pilot in command time. Then certificates, type ratings, medical class and a clean record statement if it is true.
- Work Experience. Name the operator type (airline, charter, cargo, corporate, flight school), the aircraft and your seat. Add training roles, check events passed, safety work and any line or ground instructor duties.
- Skills. Operations you know on the Technical row (airline operations, winter flying, mountain airports, oceanic), aircraft on the Tools row, and teaching or crew resource management on the Soft row.
- Education. Degree, university and year. If the degree gave you a reduced-hours ATP route, the date explains the timeline of your hours, so keep it exact.
- Certifications. Each FAA certificate with its category, class and type ratings, the instructor ratings you hold, and the medical class with the date of the last exam.
- Flight time. A Flight time list with totals by category: total, turbine, multi-engine, pilot in command, cross-country, night, instrument. Keep every figure identical to your logbook so a reviewer can compare them.
The sample resume as text
The same content as the files above, so you can copy a line or compare it with your own.
Priya Natarajan
First Officer, Embraer 175 (ATP, ERJ-170 type rating, first-class medical)
Charlotte, NC | priya.natarajan@example.com | (704) 555-0119 | linkedin.com/in/sample-priya-natarajan
Airline first officer with 3,450 total hours, including 2,300 in the Embraer 175 on Part 121 regional operations and 1,100 as pilot in command, after two years as a flight instructor. Holds an ATP certificate with an ERJ-170 type rating and a current first-class medical. No accidents, incidents or violations.
Experience
First Officer, Embraer 175, Blue Ridge Connection Airlines, Charlotte, NC (03/2023 to Present)
- Fly about 75 hours a month on regional routes across the eastern US, sharing pilot flying and pilot monitoring duties.
- Logged 2,300 hours in type and passed every recurrent training and line check on the first attempt.
- Mentor new-hire first officers during their initial operating experience on the line.
- Helped the fleet office revise the winter de-icing briefing card after filing two safety reports on holdover times.
Certified Flight Instructor, Carolina Skyway Flight Academy, Concord, NC (05/2021 to 02/2023)
- Gave about 1,050 hours of dual instruction to private, instrument and commercial students in Cessna 172s and a Piper Seminole.
- Recommended 24 students for practical tests, 22 of whom passed on the first attempt.
- Taught instrument ground school twice a year.
Flight time
- Total time: 3,450 hours
- Turbine: 2,300 hours (Embraer 175)
- Multi-engine: 2,480 hours
- Pilot in command: 1,100 hours
- Cross-country: 1,620 hours
- Night: 410 hours
- Actual and simulated instrument: 265 hours
Education
BS, Aeronautical Science, Piedmont Aviation University (05/2021)
Certifications
- Airline Transport Pilot, Airplane Multiengine Land, ERJ-170 type rating, FAA (2023)
- Flight Instructor: Airplane Single and Multiengine, Instrument (CFI, CFII, MEI), FAA (2021)
- First-Class Medical Certificate, FAA (08/2026)
Skills
Part 121 operations, Crew resource management, Threat and error management, Winter operations, ILS, RNAV and RNP approaches, Embraer 175, Cessna 172, Piper Seminole, Electronic flight bag, Clear briefings, Teaching and debriefing
How to make the sample yours
Put the minimums near the top
The ATP rule asks for 1,500 hours total, including 500 cross-country, 100 night and 250 as pilot in command (or as second in command performing PIC duties under supervision). Show where you stand on each in the summary.
Explain a reduced-hours route
Former military pilots and graduates of authorized aviation degree programs can qualify for a restricted ATP at 750, 1,000 or 1,250 hours. If your total is under 1,500, name the route you used.
State the medical
A first-class medical is required to act as pilot in command under an ATP certificate. Give the class and the month of your last exam.
Count your instructing
Dual given, students recommended for practical tests, ground school taught. It shows the briefing and debriefing skill a future captain needs.
One line on your record
If you have no accidents, incidents or violations, say so plainly. If you have one, prepare to explain it at interview rather than on the page.
Keywords to keep where they are true
Terms this kind of resume is usually searched for. Use the posting's exact wording, and only for work you have done.
- airline transport pilot
- ATP certificate
- type rating
- first officer
- Part 121
- pilot in command
- total flight time
- turbine time
- multi-engine
- crew resource management
- instrument approaches
- first-class medical
- certified flight instructor
- safety reporting
- recurrent training
Mistakes to avoid
- Flight times that do not match your logbook to the hour.
- Burying the flight time breakdown in a paragraph instead of a list.
- Leaving out the medical class and date.
- Presenting simulator-only aircraft as types you have flown on the line.
How the sample PDF reads in text extractors
We exported this sample with Resumity's PDF exporter in Chrome on 2026-10-29 and read the file back with three open-source text extractors. This shows whether software that turns a PDF into text can recover it; it is not a test of any commercial applicant tracking system. How we test templates.
| Extractor | Name, email, phone | Headings | Bullets intact |
|---|---|---|---|
| pdf.js 4.10.38 | All found | 6 of 6 | 7 of 7 |
| pdftotext (Xpdf) 4.00 | All found | 6 of 6 | 7 of 7 |
| pypdf 6.13.0 | All found | 6 of 6 | 7 of 7 |
Frequently asked questions
How many hours do I need before applying to an airline?
For the ATP certificate, 14 CFR 61.159 sets 1,500 hours total with minimums for cross-country, night and pilot in command time. Restricted ATP routes start at 750 hours for former military pilots and at 1,000 or 1,250 hours for graduates of authorized aviation degree programs.
Where should flight times go on a pilot resume?
Key totals in the summary and the full breakdown in a Flight time list. Leslie prints that list at the end of the page, so the summary has to carry the numbers recruiters screen first.
What should a flight instructor put on a resume?
Dual given, students recommended for practical tests and their results, the aircraft you teach in, and any chief or assistant chief instructor duties.
Do I list my medical certificate?
Yes, with the class and exam date. Under 14 CFR 61.23 a first-class medical is required to exercise pilot in command privileges of an ATP certificate.
Is one page enough for a pilot resume?
Usually. Pilots are screened on times, certificates and recent operators, and one clean page with a flight time list covers all three.
Will applicant tracking systems read this Leslie PDF?
The sample PDF read back with its contact details, all 6 section headings and all 7 bullets intact in three open-source text extractors (pdf.js, pdftotext and pypdf). Commercial systems such as Workday, Greenhouse or Taleo were not tested, and each employer configures its own.
Guides and templates for this resume
Sources, checked 29 October 2026
We opened every page below on that date. Pay, rules and requirements change, so check the source before you rely on a detail.
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School (e-CFR text): 14 CFR 61.159: Aeronautical experience, airplane category rating (ATP airplane: at least 1,500 hours total time including 500 cross-country, 100 night, 50 in class, and 250 as PIC or as SIC performing PIC duties under supervision)
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School (e-CFR text): 14 CFR 61.160: Airplane category restricted privileges (restricted ATP at 750 hours (former military pilots), 1,000 hours (bachelor degree with aviation major from an authorized institution) or 1,250 hours (associate degree or 30 credit hours))
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School (e-CFR text): 14 CFR 61.23: Medical certificates, requirement and duration (a first-class medical certificate is required when exercising pilot in command privileges of an ATP certificate)
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