AirComp Calculator’s Dr. Chris Broyhill: Business Aviation Compensation Growth Accelerates to 8% in 2026, Up From 6%

Flight departments paying at the 50th percentile of the business aviation market are ‘accepting risk’ as 2027 budgets take shape, Broyhill says

LAS VEGAS, NV, UNITED STATES, October 19, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Total compensation for business aviation professionals rose 8% in 2026, according to AirComp Calculator’s analysis of industry surveys. That’s up from the 6% gain the company measured for 2025.

The 2026 increase is more than twice the national rate of 3.4% for U.S. workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index.

For flight departments setting 2027 budgets, that gap matters, said AirComp Calculator’s founder, Dr. Chris Broyhill, CAM Fellow, CCP. A plan built on the 3% to 4% raises common elsewhere could leave crews paid below the market.

“If you're paying at the 50th percentile of what the business aviation market is paying, you’re accepting risk,” Broyhill said. “You need something else to retain your employees, whether it’s a predictable schedule or a great culture. Even better, offer both.”

A competing offer usually must beat current compensation by more than 10% to pull someone away, he said. “Sometimes a 10% pay increase won’t do it. The number has to be life-changing to want to pull up roots, relocate your family and start again at a new flight department.”

Broyhill expects the airlines to keep hiring in 2027. About 4,300 airline pilots a year will reach the Federal Aviation Administration’s mandatory retirement age of 65 through 2042, The Wall Street Journal reported. In an NBAA study he led of more than 1,100 business aviation pilots, a predictable schedule was the top reason they left for the airlines.

Even top-of-market compensation may not keep them. “You can pay somebody that’s flying a super-mid at the 90th percentile, and that’s still probably not going to be enough to keep them from the mainline carriers if they want to go,” he said.

Broyhill digs into retention, compensation and other flight department leadership challenges on “The Flight Department Show,” the podcast he launched this year.

Long-range crews pulled the top of the market up

Broyhill said growth was strongest among crews of premium long-range aircraft. “The bigger the iron, the bigger the paycheck,” he said. “The type rating might be the same, but the job is different, and you get paid for the job, not the type rating.”

In one industry compensation survey covering Gulfstream G700 captains at 10% of the organizations operating long-range aircraft, average base salary was about $343,000. The 90th percentile reached $435,000. With bonuses, average total cash compensation was about $395,000, rising to about $495,000 at the 90th percentile. “People are just showing up to work flying an airplane and making 500 grand,” Broyhill said.

Where a pilot is based can matter as much as what they fly

Base salary in the Northeast typically runs 10% to 15% above the national average, Broyhill said, and some West Coast positions run close to 30% above. The spread can be wide even within one state. A pilot based in Redding, California, might see a regional premium near 5%, compared with 30% or more in the San Francisco Bay Area.

How AirComp Calculator works

AirComp Calculator draws on three major industry compensation surveys each year, including the NBAA Compensation Survey. Each covers a different slice of the market. All three capture first-quarter data and typically reach the public about three months later. Broyhill ages that data forward using five-year average growth factors for each position. He then matches results to the right aircraft class and adjusts for local labor markets using Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Those surveys depend on participation, which has slipped across the industry, Broyhill said. “The more flight departments that take part, the more accurate the data is for everyone, especially the smaller departments that make up much of business aviation.”

Meet Broyhill at NBAA-BACE

This week, Broyhill will attend NBAA’s Small Operator Symposium and Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition in Las Vegas. Today, at the Symposium, he will present “The Accidental Director” from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. in Room W231. He’ll explain why leadership erodes when talent is treated as an afterthought, and what consistently strong operators do differently when the pressure is on. Attendees will leave with frameworks they can put to work right away.

On Thursday, Oct. 22, from 11 a.m. to noon in Room W219, he will co-present with Sheryl Barden, CEO of Aviation Personnel International. Their educational session, “Beyond the Survey: Decoding Job Titles, Roles and Compensation Trends in Aviation,” will show how mismatched job titles skew compensation survey comparisons and what turnover costs a flight department. Attendees will have access to a one-page guide to writing job descriptions that support sound compensation decisions.

While at BACE, Broyhill will meet by appointment with flight department leaders and aviation professionals to run compensation reports on site and walk through the results. Reports that include Broyhill’s personal analysis start at $420. To book an on-site review, visit aircompcalculator.com/bace.

For those who prefer to run their own numbers, reports are available for download anytime at aircompcalculator.com. AirComp Navigator™ gives individual professionals salary ranges for career decisions, starting at $250. AirComp Standard™ gives flight departments and their HR partners ranges and comparisons for base salary, total cash and total compensation, starting at $350.

About AirComp Calculator

Headquartered in Dallas, veteran-owned AirComp Calculator™ provides regionally adjusted compensation reports for business aviation professionals and the organizations that employ them. Founded in 2020 by Dr. Chris Broyhill, the company covers 21 positions, nine aircraft classes and more than 80 U.S. metropolitan markets, drawing on validated industry surveys, public labor data and proprietary analysis.

Pilots, maintenance professionals, flight attendants, schedulers and aviation managers use AirComp Calculator to evaluate job offers, prepare for compensation discussions and understand their market value. Flight departments, aircraft owners, management companies and HR teams use it to benchmark compensation, support recruiting and retention, and plan budgets. Services include individual and organizational reports, annual subscriptions, custom compensation studies and consulting. Learn more at aircompcalculator.com.

Jill Henning
AirComp Calculator