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Pilot Salary in the UAE
3 airlines based in the United Arab Emirates, compared on our captain and first officer estimates and ranges. Civil aviation authority: GCAA.
Pilot salary by airline in the UAE
Airlines whose sources we have checked come first, each figure shown with who it applies to, what it includes and when it was published. The rest are sorted by captain average, highest first. Click an airline for its pay breakdown, fleet, hiring requirements and reviews from working pilots. Note that the UAE levies no personal income tax, so these figures are close to take-home.
Airlines whose sources we have checked (3)
“Official posting” means the airline’s own published figure, “job posting” a recruitment agency’s advert, “past ad” a vacancy that has since closed, and “modelled example” a figure we can reproduce from a published document and its formula. “Estimated” is our own estimate from public information, not a figure the airline publishes.
| Airline | Position | Annual figure we publish |
|---|---|---|
| Emirates | Captain | Direct entry captain: $157K (cash pay, annual, Official posting); Direct entry captain: $323K (total package, annual (includes the cash pay), Official posting) |
| First officer | First officer, Standard: $105K (cash pay, annual, Official posting); First officer, Standard: $245K (total package, annual (includes the cash pay), Official posting); First officer, Enhanced: $113K (cash pay, annual, Official posting); First officer, Enhanced: $255K (total package, annual (includes the cash pay), Official posting) | |
| flydubai | Captain | $218K (Estimated) |
| First officer | $158K (Estimated) | |
| Etihad Airways | Captain | Captain, A320 (top of the advertised range): $184K (maximum quoted in the vacancy, annual, Job posting) |
| First officer | First officer, A320 (top of the advertised range): $140K (maximum quoted in the vacancy, annual, Job posting) |
Where the UAE sits worldwide
Captain estimates side by side. The UAE sits at $281K against a $270K world average — about 4% above. That places it 6th of the 52 countries we give an average for.
Country figures are the mean of our captain estimates for the airlines we list there. First officers: $154K worldwide. These are our own estimates from public information, not figures the airlines publish. Where an airline has published a figure itself, we show that separately on its own page.
Compare other countries
To see the whole region at once, go to pilot salary in the Middle East — 10 airlines across 7 countries, captains averaging $257K.
Frequently asked questions
How much do pilots earn in the UAE?
Which airline in the UAE pays pilots the most?
How does the UAE rank worldwide for pilot pay?
Is pilot pay in the UAE tax-free?
How does it compare with Japanese airlines?
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