Aviation Insider sets out TUI pilot pay in the UK, from full-time scales and the 81.3% new entrant contract to allowances, rosters and pensions.
What the video covers
Written in our own words. It only describes what the video shows and says.One UK career structure and bases
The video introduces TUI as a UK airline career that combines Boeing 737 and 787 flying. Pay scales cover current and future aircraft types, including mixed fleet flying. Short haul and long haul pilots sit on the same pay scales and the same seniority list. Moving to the 787 still depends on training and vacancies. The bases named are Gatwick, Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Exeter, Bournemouth, Newcastle and Glasgow, with charter work and overseas detachments on top.
Pay scales and new entrant figures
From April 2026, full-time UK basic pay is given as £70,924 for a second officer and £88,652 for a first officer. The first officer point after five years in rank is £97,178, rising to £105,697 once command suitable. A new captain starts at £145,562. The captain scale reaches £177,445 after ten years in rank. Part-time pay is pro rata. The new entrant agreement described in the video is an 81.3% part-year contract, giving around £57,661 for a second officer and £72,074 for a first officer. A direct entry pilot who needs a type rating can see salary reduced by £7,000 a year for three years. Without a type rating, the reduction can apply for one year. The video advises confirming how that deduction interacts with the 81.3% arrangement.
Variable pay, seasonality and career factors
Duty rig is paid per credit from April 2026 at £11.06 for a second officer, £13.86 for a first officer and £19.94 for a captain. Every rank also receives a flight duty allowance. Crew estimates put the two together at around £12,000 a year for a second officer, £15,000 for a first officer and £20,000 for a captain. Overtime estimates are around £6,000 for second and first officers and £10,000 for captains, although a substantial proportion do none. Worked examples come to around £75,700 for an 81.3% second officer, £93,000 for an 81.3% first officer and £175,600 for a new full-time captain. The seasonal arrangement is full-time from 1 May to 31 October, then two weeks on and two weeks off from 1 November to 30 April. There is no fixed repeating roster within the working blocks. Command is estimated at six to eight years, with no routine direct entry captain route. The pension described is a 10% employer contribution when the pilot contributes 3.5%, on basic salary only. Pilot Income Protection is funded by a fixed 4.52% company contribution to applicable pilot payroll costs.
