British Airways vs easyJet
A side-by-side comparison of pilot careers at British Airways (BA) and easyJet (U2) — 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.
easyJet opens earlier
easyJet states 250 hours where British Airways states 500. That gap is roughly 1 year of flying at a typical instructor's pace, so for most candidates these are not two applications you send the same week — one is now and the other is later.
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 the other one too.
Knowing what British Airways 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. And when you reach the interview, there are 100 British Airways-specific questions with model answers, the red flags that fail each one, and the follow-ups the panel actually asks.
Head-to-Head Comparison
Requirements Comparison
British Airways
- EASA/UK ATPL
- Class 1 medical
- UK right to work
- Strong CRM and leadership skills
- Minimum 500 hours multi-crew
easyJet
- EASA/UK ATPL
- Class 1 medical
- Airbus type rating preferred
- 250+ hours on type
Pros & Cons
British Airways
Pros
- +Modern fleet with 787 Dreamliner
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
easyJet
Pros
- +Faster career progression
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
Cons
- –Higher workload with quick turnarounds
- –Type rating required before application
About Each Airline
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 →easyJet
Major European LCC with bases across the UK and Europe. All-Airbus fleet with good work-life balance for a low-cost carrier.
Full easyJet career guide →Calculate Your Salary
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