What pay figures have been reported for TAP pilots?

TAP Air Portugal does not list pay on its pilot recruitment page. In May 2024, Observador reported that people familiar with the process put the basic salary of TAP's roughly 600 captains at around 10 thousand euros gross per month and that of its roughly 600 co-pilots at around seven thousand euros. In December 2020, the then infrastructure minister Pedro Nuno Santos said a TAP first officer with one year of service earned 84 thousand euros gross a year, and a first officer with 10 years could earn 150 thousand euros. He said an A320 captain with 10 years could earn 185 thousand euros a year, rising to 241 thousand euros with 20 years and 260 thousand euros with 30 years, as total pay including variable elements. The pilots' union SPAC disputed those figures, arguing that basic pay should be separated from variable pay for extra work, because two pilots of the same rank can end the year with different totals depending on overtime. According to Observador, the government's figures were estimates prepared by TAP from the public company agreements, calibrated through interviews.12314

What does the pilots' company agreement say?

TAP pilots approved a new company agreement (acordo de empresa) with SPAC with 83.6% of those present voting in favour, which ended the pay cuts, according to Forbes Portugal in June 2023. The agreement applies only to unionised pilots and runs until 31 December 2026. In March 2024, pilots voted by 51.7% to 46.6% to postpone their pay rise for 2024 to December instead of January, with the same applying in 2025, Renascença reported. They also temporarily gave up the premium for night hours and public holidays. In 2018, TAP and SPAC agreed pay rises of 5.0% in 2018, 5.0% in 2019, 3.0% in 2020, 1.0% in 2021 and 1.0% in 2022, a total of 15.0% before any inflation correction. That deal provided for compensation equal to one basic salary for each year in which TAP outsourced more than 8% of block hours, paid in twelfths and ranging from 283.33 euros a month for a gross salary of 3,400 euros to 520.83 euros for a salary of 6,250 euros; the report gives no period for those salaries.489

How did the restructuring affect pilot pay?

The emergency agreement approved in February 2021 covered 1,252 pilots and set pay cuts of 50% in 2021, 45% in 2022, 40% in 2023 and 35% in 2024, including the 25% cut applied to all TAP staff. In June 2022, TAP said it would unilaterally reduce the cut in pilot pay by 10% and pay the landing subsidy without cuts, backdated to January 2022. In September 2022, 92.8% of 639 pilots present or represented approved a deal providing an extraordinary payment and the removal of the additional pilot cut, then 10%, from 1 January 2023. In 2022, Portugal's supreme court ruled for SPAC over errors in calculating pay and holiday pay since 2010, ordering compensation reported at 50 million euros for around 1,000 pilots. In November 2022, TAP and SPAC agreed that flying on days off or holidays would be paid at an hourly rate of 2.2% of the salary table in force on 31 December 2020, without the pay cut. In May 2024, Observador reported that around 1,200 pilots who worked in 2023 would receive six extra basic salaries because TAP exceeded the agreement's limit on outsourced flying.15671011

What does the Lufthansa deal mean for pilots?

On 14 October 2026, the Portuguese government selected Lufthansa to buy 44.9% of TAP, plus up to 5% if employees do not take up their share, for a total of 1,201 million euros, with the state keeping 50.1%. The government said Lufthansa's plan foresees fleet growth to 117 aircraft by 2035 and 130 after 2035, and the possibility of a military pilot training school in Tancos. In May 2026, SPAC leader Hélder Santinhos told Lusa he was very concerned about how Lufthansa approaches labour relations, citing its relationship with the German pilots' union VC Cockpit. No source we found sets out new pay terms for pilots linked to the sale.1213

How does TAP recruit pilots?

On 15 October 2026, TAP's recruitment site listed no pilot vacancies and stated that unsolicited applications for first officer are not accepted. In March 2019, TAP signed an agreement with FTEJerez under which selected graduates who complete EASA ATPL training can apply for a first officer position and may be invited to an assessment in Lisbon.1415