Aer Lingus vs British Airways
A side-by-side comparison of pilot careers at Aer Lingus (EI) and British Airways (BA) — covering salary, fleet, requirements, and more.
Airline selection starts with an aptitude battery
It screens you before a human reads your application. Sit a timed practice paper free — scored on pace, which is what actually culls candidates.
Which one fits you
Read from the numbers above rather than from opinion. Where the published data does not settle a question, it is left open instead of guessed.
Same hour gate
Both state 500 hours, so hours will not decide this one. What decides it is the selection process itself — aptitude testing, the sim assessment and the competency interview.
Different countries, different right to work
Aer Lingus hires into Ireland and British Airways into United Kingdom. Before comparing anything else, check which one you can legally be employed in — residency and licence conversion decide more applications than flying ability does.
Whichever you pick, the gate is the same shape
Both run an aptitude battery before a human reads your CV, then a competency interview scored against the ICAO pilot competencies. We have a full pack for British Airways, and not for the other one yet.
Knowing what Aer Lingus pays is the easy part. Getting through their selection is the part that decides whether you ever earn it.
Before a human reads your application there is an aptitude battery, and candidates consistently report it as the heaviest cull — pace, not difficulty. You can practise it here for free: timed papers generated fresh each run, plus a divided-attention drill that measures how much your performance degrades under load.
No Aer Lingus pack yet — want it built?
We will not pretend to have one. We build the next pack for the airline that gets asked for most, so leaving your address here is a vote. No sequence, one email when it ships.
Head-to-Head Comparison
Requirements Comparison
Aer Lingus
- EASA ATPL
- Class 1 medical
- EU right to work
- 500+ hours multi-crew
British Airways
- EASA/UK ATPL
- Class 1 medical
- UK right to work
- Strong CRM and leadership skills
- Minimum 500 hours multi-crew
Pros & Cons
Aer Lingus
Pros
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
British Airways
Pros
- +Modern fleet with 787 Dreamliner
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
About Each Airline
Aer Lingus
Ireland's flag carrier, now part of IAG, operates transatlantic and European routes from Dublin and Shannon.
Full Aer Lingus career guide →British Airways
The UK's flag carrier operates from London Heathrow, one of the world's busiest airports, with routes spanning the globe.
Full British Airways career guide →Calculate Your Salary
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