Time for your career as a pilot to change course? A top-flight pilot cover letter can give your application some added fuel and propel you to higher altitudes.
When your dream job is on the horizon, Resume.io has what you need to get started, including 125+ occupation-specific writing guides and corresponding cover letter examples. This cover letter writing guide, backed by a pilot cover letter example, will cover these topics:
- The best format for structuring a cover letter
- How each cover letter section conveys your excellence as a pilot job candidate: header, greeting, introduction, body and conclusion
- Writing psychology to persuade hiring managers you’d be an asset to their crew
- Common cover letter mistakes to avoid crashing your chances.
Employment prospects for airline and commercial pilots are soaring into the next decade, according to the U.S. Bureau of Employment Statistics. Job market demand is projected to grow by 13% from 2020 to 2030, faster than the average for all occupations. This partly reflects the rebound in business and leisure travel following the pandemic-induced economic recession that grounded thousands of pilots for prolonged stretches.
Best format for a pilot cover letter
One connection at a time, let’s map out the surest path towards an interview-winning pilot cover letter. It will be consist of these parts:
- Cover letter header
- Cover letter greeting
- Cover letter introduction
- Cover letter body
- Cover letter closing.
Before offering tips for navigating each of these cover letter sections, here are some key guidelines for reader-friendliness.
- Keep it short — 300 to 350 words is ideal, confined to one page.
- The overall appearance should be neat, clean and streamlined, with ample white space in the margins and between lines.
- Make thoughtful choices of fonts and sparing creative touches.
Here is an adaptable pilot cover letter example that you can customize for the position and employer:
Dear Mr Korthley,
Having worked as a charter pilot in Canada and North America for the past five years (in particular on the New York to Vegas route) and previously flying military cargo planes, the charter pilot position to fly Lear Jets and Gulfstreams with LightAir is an ideal next step.
I have experience across a range of aircraft, including LearJet 35 and 60, Gulfstream 450 and 500 and Hawker 800XP, amongst others. On gaining my pilot’s license with the U.S. Air Force (graduating top 10% in my class), I specialised in flying far larger aircraft, but I enjoy the responsiveness of the smaller corporate jet and would not go back. My certifications include: the ATP, CFI and AGI along with full first aid an emergency preparedness training.
My previous employer was meticulous about measuring the smoothness of their flights and I was rated the best out of 8 pilots for comfort. I can deliver a first-class passenger experience through all but the worst of weather. 55% of my passengers on my Vegas flights were repeat fliers and I regularly enjoyed extra hospitality “bonuses” from my employer whenever there was a stopover. I do not gamble, but I do enjoy the buzz of the city and it is important to be able to share the Vegas magic while chatting with my passengers mid-flight.
During my military postings in the Middle East, I became conversant in Arabic to a good level and this is always something I seek to tap into when I fly the 25% of my passengers who were from that region. I know that this is a demographic that you are particularly keen on targeting.
I would value the opportunity for and interview to discuss my experience in more depth.
Sincerely,
Connie Chang
For more inspiration, check out our related transportation cover letter samples:
Cover letter header
Your cover letter header commands the top of the page and is important to:
- Readily establish your identity and contact information so a duly impressed employer can contact you with no hesitation for an interview.
- Set you apart from other pilot applicants with a distinctive visual “brand.”
Make them match
Impress hiring managers with the extra attention to detail that goes into a matching cover letter and resume pair— notably in the header. Aligning the visual styles of your two job application documents could improve the chances of both getting more than a passing glance.
Goal of the cover letter header: A visually distinctive header lets you stand out other job candidates and makes it easy for interested recruiters to contact you. Check out our pilot cover letter sample for more ideas on how to make your header stand out.
Cover letter greeting
Science affirms the positive psychological impact of hearing or reading our own name. That’s why your pilot cover letter greeting should address the reader by name whenever possible. Depending on the company’s size and hiring process, the recipient may be your future boss, the chief pilot or an HR manager. If you’re unsure, and no one is named in the job application instructions, try to find out on the employer’s website or make a phone call.
You can’t go wrong with the traditional salutation “Dear <Mr.> or <Ms.> Surname.” If you’re certain that a less formal greeting would be acceptable, go with “Hello,” “Greetings” or even “Hi,” instead of “Dear.” But a first-name-basis greeting is not recommended unless you and the recipient know each other personally.
If your efforts to come up with a recipient’s name don’t pan out, try a greeting along these lines that fits the situation: “Dear RightFlight Pilot Recruiting Manager” or “Dear UpWays Pilot Hiring Team.”
Goal of the cover letter greeting: Making a direct personal connection with the cover letter recipient starts your cover letter off on a professional, yet approachable, note.
Dear Mr Korthley,
Cover letter introduction
The introduction is the lift-off point for your pilot cover letter, where hiring managers are intrigued with a sense of anticipation. They will naturally expect these two or three opening statements to launch your most persuasive reasons for being a great pilot. What they might not expect are insights into your motivation to deliver what they need when hired.
If you’ve laid the groundwork by thoroughly informing yourself about the airline and the position needing to filled, your cover letter is on its way with these introductory points:
- You’re excited about this career opportunity and would be proud to fly for this airline or commercial carrier.
- This company stands to benefit from the experience and achievements you have to offer.
Sound energetic, engaging and respectfully self-assured. Stop short of the details, beyond piquing the reader’s curiosity to learn more.
Goal of the cover letter introduction: Capture the recruiter’s interest by appealing to what this employer needs to know about your potential and desire to contribute.
Here’s an introduction idea from our pilot cover letter sample:
Having worked as a charter pilot in Canada and North America for the past five years (in particular on the New York to Vegas route) and previously flying military cargo planes, the charter pilot position to fly Lear Jets and Gulfstreams with LightAir is an ideal next step.
Cover letter body
The body section of your pilot cover letter should glide smoothly at cruising altitude over a few carefully selected career highlights. Elaborate in relevant and relatable terms that demonstrate what you know about this airline, what it stands for and and how it stands to benefit with you in the pilot’s seat.
Don’t rehash the same information in the same way it appears in your resume. Reframe your past accomplishments as future contributions, citing facts and figures for context. Incorporate a story that illustrates your commitment to continued learning and professional development.
Goal of the cover letter body: Instill the reader’s confidence by making relevant connections between your pilot background and potential benefits to this hiring company.
This pilot cover letter sample illustrates what you might include in the middle part:
I have experience across a range of aircraft, including LearJet 35 and 60, Gulfstream 450 and 500 and Hawker 800XP, amongst others. On gaining my pilot’s license with the U.S. Air Force (graduating top 10% in my class), I specialised in flying far larger aircraft, but I enjoy the responsiveness of the smaller corporate jet and would not go back. My certifications include: the ATP, CFI and AGI along with full first aid an emergency preparedness training.
My previous employer was meticulous about measuring the smoothness of their flights and I was rated the best out of 8 pilots for comfort. I can deliver a first-class passenger experience through all but the worst of weather. 55% of my passengers on my Vegas flights were repeat fliers and I regularly enjoyed extra hospitality “bonuses” from my employer whenever there was a stopover. I do not gamble, but I do enjoy the buzz of the city and it is important to be able to share the Vegas magic while chatting with my passengers mid-flight.
During my military postings in the Middle East, I became conversant in Arabic to a good level and this is always something I seek to tap into when I fly the 25% of my passengers who were from that region. I know that this is a demographic that you are particularly keen on targeting.
Cover letter closing
The conclusion of your cover letter should effectively touch down on the job-landing strip by actually leaving something up in the air. A call to action is designed to leave the next move up to the employer. Convey enough eagerness about meeting for an interview that the recruiter will feel uncomfortable to leave your letter unanswered and dismissed. At the very least, end your cover letter by saying you look forward to hearing back soon.
That’s all. Next, simply sign off with “Sincerely,” Best regards,” or “Best,” above your name.
Aim of the cover letter closing: An upbeat ending includes a call to action that ideally results in an interview.
Below is the closing section of our pilot cover letter example.
I would value the opportunity for and interview to discuss my experience in more depth.
Sincerely,
Connie Chang
Writing psychology: leading with the right traits
What employers need to know about your pilot qualifications — from training hours logged to technical skills and licensing endorsements — can be found in your resume. But the story of who you are and what you would look like on board as an airline hiring prospect is where your cover letter landing lights should aim.
In an Aerocorner.com overview of the people skills every pilot needs, writer Matt Claiborne points out two realities that influence hiring managers: they can train you to do pretty much anything in the plane, but they can’t train you to be likable.
“Do I want to spend all day in a tiny airplane cockpit with this person? That’s the question that every pilot asks themselves when they meet another pilot,” Claiborne notes. “When you go for a pilot job interview, the chief pilot will be asking themselves just that question. And they’ll probably answer it before they ever fly with you.”
Soft skills figure prominently in this Aerocorner.com top 7 list of pilot attributes:
1. A “command presence”
Common cover mistakes to avoid
Avoiding the most common pitfalls will ensure your pilot cover letter stays in the air long enough to give hiring managers the clearest, brightest full picture of your attributes. Any of these mistakes could abort your cover letter’s takeoff.
- A generic cover letter signals an autopilot job search attitude — that you’re not taking it seriously enough to target this specific career destination.
- Too much talk about yourself and not enough about what you can do for this employer will miss the mark.
- Meaningless clichés and redundant word bloat add excess baggage weight that can keep your cover letter from getting off the ground.
- Without a good sense of your personality and soft skills, hiring managers won’t know whether you are easy to work with and can instill trust and confidence in crew members and passengers.
- Typos, spelling mistakes and grammatical goofs are flashing light indicators of carelessness, which obviously has no place on or off the runway.
- Design and formatting flaws can be perceived as potentially hazardous disregard for procedural details, but are easily avoided with a cover letter template.
Key takeaways for a pilot cover letter
- Blue skies are forecast for pilots in the coming decade, with job growth outpacing the average for all other occupations. An interview-landing cover letter will equip you for the best career opportunities that arise.
- Tailor your persuasive hiring case to what this employer needs and expects from the pilots flying its planes.
- To feel confident that passengers and cargo are in good hands, hiring managers need a sense of your personality and soft skills, not just your flying qualifications and experience.
- Check out our pilot cover letter sample to see why a visually attractive and error-proof cover letter speaks to your professionalism and attention to detail.
