Pilots wanted for $100k role, but they won’t leave the ground

A newly launched role for pilots has been described “as niche as pilot jobs get”.

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British Airways (BA) is currently hiring wide-body pilots, but the successful candidates won’t actually take off or land the aircraft.

In fact, the UK flag carrier is hunting for experienced pilots to simply taxi planes between terminals at Chicago O’Hare International Airport in the US.

The rather bemusing role caused Ben Schlappig, an airline, hotel, loyalty programme expert and founder at One Mile at a Time, to make the “niche” comment – and he’s not wrong.

The job, posted on BA’s careers website, pays between $90,000 (€76,995) and $100,000 (€85,551), but pilots will never leave the ground.

Requirements for the role include “recent experience of operating the Boeing 777 or 787 as Captain or First Officer” as well as a “willingness to learn and adapt to the British Airways Standard Operating Procedures” and a “high degree of familiarity with procedures at Chicago O’Hare airport”.

Why does this role even exist?

At Chicago’s main airport, BA flights arrive at Terminal 5, but fly out of Terminal 3. That means that experienced pilots are required to taxi planes between their two temporary homes.

While it’s not an unheard-of job, it is unusual.

At the majority of airports, ground crews tend to use a pushback tug vehicle in order to move aircraft. For myriad reasons, though, at O’Hare, it’s both more efficient and safer to use the plane’s own engines.

Unsurprisingly, the taxiing role pays less than that of less experienced pilots hired by top US-based airlines.

According to data from the ATP Flight School, airlines, including American and United, all pay a starting salary of more than $117,000 (€100,094).

So, who would take on such a role, where slowly taxiing planes on the ground rather than flying through the skies is the main task?

“I suppose if you’re recently retired, didn’t pass a medical, etc, this could be an interesting role,” Schlappig said.

Although the role seems very novel, it’s actually not brand new.

“We have been hiring highly qualified, local pilots to reposition our aircraft between Terminal 5 and Terminal 3 since we moved our departure operations to Terminal 3 in 2024,” a spokesperson for the airline told Euronews Travel.

BA currently flies direct daily from London Heathrow to Chicago and is looking to expand its long-haul offering to the US and further afield.

From winter 2026, it will increase flights to New Orleans to four per week, Baltimore journeys will become daily, and Houston will see 12 flights a week.

The carrier hopes that by the end of this year, it will grow its long-haul network by 9% internationally by increasing the number of flights it offers. It’s also adding two new direct destinations – Melbourne in Australia and Colombo in Sri Lanka.