Who works at an airline

Sources

• Southwest Airlines Co. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · Southwest Airlines Co. (filed with the U.S. SEC), 2025
• Occupational Outlook Handbook: Airline and Commercial Pilots (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
• 14 CFR 119.65: Management personnel required for operations conducted under part 121 · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• Delta Air Lines, Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · Delta Air Lines, Inc. (filed with the U.S. SEC), 2025
• SkyWest, Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 (Item 1: employees, fleet, code-share and capacity purchase agreements) · SkyWest, Inc. (filed with the U.S. SEC), 2025
• U.S. Cargo and Passenger Airlines Gained 933 Jobs in August 2026 (BTS 26-77, October 15, 2026) · U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, 2026
• 14 CFR 119.69: Management personnel required for operations conducted under part 135 · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• 14 CFR 61.159: Aeronautical experience for an airline transport pilot certificate, airplane category · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• 14 CFR 61.160: Aeronautical experience, airplane category restricted privileges (military pilots and aviation degrees) · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• 14 CFR 121.436: Pilot qualification, certificates and experience requirements · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• 14 CFR 121.467: Flight attendant duty period limitations and rest requirements · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• Occupational Outlook Handbook: Flight Attendants (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
• 14 CFR 121.391: Flight attendants (how many a passenger plane must carry) · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• 14 CFR 121.393: Crewmember requirements at stops where passengers remain on board · Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 2026
• Occupational Outlook Handbook: Aircraft and Avionics Equipment Mechanics and Technicians (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025

Every number

• 72,790 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest's active full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K; two half-time workers count as one).
• 10,321 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Pilots: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 21,197 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Flight Attendants: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 14.2%sec.gov ·2025 · Worked out: Southwest's 10,321 people pilots out of its 72,790 people, full-time equivalents, at the end of 2025.
• 17,565 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Ramp, Operations, Provisioning, Freight Agents: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 6,798 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Customer Service Agents, Customer Representatives, and Source of Support Representatives: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 2,999 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Mechanics & Related Employees: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 508 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Southwest Dispatchers: Southwest's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025 (its 10-K's labor table; two half-time workers count as one).
• 1,001 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Worked out: six smaller groups in Southwest's labor table added up (material specialists, aircraft appearance technicians, flight crew training instructors, flight simulator technicians, facilities maintenance technicians and meteorologists), full-time equivalents at the end of 2025.
• 12,401 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Worked out: Southwest's 72,790 people minus everyone in the twelve union groups of its labor table, full-time equivalents at the end of 2025. The 10-K doesn't list who they are.
• $232,140/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual wage for airline pilots, copilots and flight engineers, May 2025, all employers (BLS).
• 5 postsecfr.gov ·2026 · Full-time management posts a US airline must fill (or approved equivalents): Director of Safety, Director of Operations, Chief Pilot, Director of Maintenance and Chief Inspector (14 CFR 119.65(a)).
• 103,000 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · Delta's full-time equivalent employees at the end of 2025, approximately (its 10-K, Item 1).
• 15,775 peoplesec.gov ·2025 · SkyWest's employees at the end of 2025, part-time employees included (its 10-K).
• 5 peopleexample (example number: Our example: a small charter company with a couple of planes, counted as people. Not a measured average.) · Our example: a small charter company with a couple of planes, counted as people. Not a measured average.
• 523,304 peoplebts.gov ·2026 · Full-time equivalents at the US scheduled passenger airlines reporting to BTS, August 2026.
• 24 airlinesbts.gov ·2026 · US scheduled passenger airlines reporting employment to BTS for August 2026.
• 3 leadersecfr.gov ·2026 · Management posts a charter or commuter operator must fill unless it uses only one pilot: Director of Operations, Chief Pilot and Director of Maintenance (14 CFR 119.69(a)).
• 5,354 pilotssec.gov ·2025 · SkyWest's pilots at the end of 2025 (its 10-K).
• 4,831 flight attendantssec.gov ·2025 · SkyWest's flight attendants at the end of 2025 (its 10-K).
• 199 dispatcherssec.gov ·2025 · SkyWest's dispatchers at the end of 2025 (its 10-K).
• 1,500 hoursecfr.gov ·2026 · Total flight time as a pilot needed for an airline transport pilot certificate, airplane category (14 CFR 61.159(a)).
• 1,000 hoursecfr.gov ·2026 · Total flight time needed for a restricted airline transport pilot certificate with a bachelor's degree with an aviation major from an approved program (14 CFR 61.160(b)). It lets you fly as a first officer, not as captain (14 CFR 61.167(b)).
• 750 hoursecfr.gov ·2026 · Total flight time needed for a restricted airline transport pilot certificate by a US military pilot (14 CFR 61.160(a)).
• 1,000 hoursecfr.gov ·2026 · Hours a captain at a US airline needs as a second in command (first officer) at an airline, or in the listed similar airline flying (14 CFR 121.436(a)(3)).
• 10 hoursecfr.gov ·2026 · Rest a flight attendant must get after a scheduled duty period of up to fourteen hours, at least this many in a row (14 CFR 121.467(b)).
• 4 hoursbls.gov ·2025 · BLS: flight attendants' on-duty shifts may run from this many hours to 18 hours or longer.
• 18 hoursbls.gov ·2025 · BLS: flight attendants' on-duty shifts may run from 4 hours to this many or longer.
• $63,580/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual wage for flight attendants, May 2025 (BLS).
• 133,700 jobsbls.gov ·2025 · Flight attendant jobs in the US, 2025 (BLS).
• 9%bls.gov ·2025 · BLS's projected growth in flight attendant jobs, 2025 to 2035: much faster than the average.
• 18,500 openings a yearbls.gov ·2025 · Flight attendant openings BLS projects each year, on average, 2025 to 2035.
• 175 seatssec.gov ·2025 · Seats on each of Southwest's two biggest Boeing models (its 2025 10-K, Item 2).
• 2 flight attendantsecfr.gov ·2026 · Flight attendants a plane with more than 100 seats needs before adding more (14 CFR 121.391(a)(4)).
• 100 seatsecfr.gov ·2026 · Above this many seats, a plane needs one more flight attendant for each 50 seats or part of one (14 CFR 121.391(a)(4)).
• 50 seatsecfr.gov ·2026 · Each block of this many seats (or part of one) above 100 seats adds one flight attendant (14 CFR 121.391(a)(4)).
• 75 seatsecfr.gov ·2026 · Worked out: 175 seats − 100 seats, the seats above the first hundred.
• 4 flight attendantsecfr.gov ·2026 · Worked out under 14 CFR 121.391(a)(4) for 175 seats: 2 flight attendants, plus one for each 50 seats or part of one above 100 seats.
• 50 seatssec.gov ·2025 · Seats on SkyWest's smallest jets in scheduled service, at most (the seat ranges in its 2025 10-K).
• 1 flight attendantecfr.gov ·2026 · Worked out under 14 CFR 121.391(a)(1): a jet of this size needs one.
• 76 seatssec.gov ·2025 · Seats on SkyWest's largest regional jets, at most (the seat ranges in its 2025 10-K).
• 2 flight attendantsecfr.gov ·2026 · Worked out under 14 CFR 121.391(a)(3): a plane with more than fifty seats and up to a hundred needs two.
• 137 seatssec.gov ·2025 · Seats on Southwest's older Boeing model after a retrofit finished in January 2026 (its 2025 10-K, Item 2, footnote).
• 3 flight attendantsecfr.gov ·2026 · Worked out under 14 CFR 121.391(a)(4) for 137 seats: 2 flight attendants, plus one for the part of a block of 50 seats above 100 seats.