Copa Airlines vs Avianca
A side-by-side comparison of pilot careers at Copa Airlines (CM) and Avianca (AV) — 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 1,500 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.
Copa Airlines pays higher at both ends
Top of band: $90,000 as an FO and $200,000 as a captain. Bands are wide because seniority, fleet and country tax all move them — treat this as direction, not a payslip.
Different countries, different right to work
Copa Airlines hires into Panama and Avianca into Colombia. 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 Copa Airlines and the other one too.
Knowing what Copa Airlines 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 Copa Airlines-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
Copa Airlines
- DGAC ATPL or ICAO equivalent
- 1,500+ hours
- Class 1 medical
- Spanish and English proficiency
Avianca
- DGAC ATPL or equivalent
- 1,500+ hours total
- Class 1 medical
- Spanish proficiency
- Colombian work authorization or cadet program
Pros & Cons
Copa Airlines
Pros
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
Avianca
Pros
- +Modern fleet with 787 Dreamliner
- +Simplified fleet — fewer type ratings needed
- +Cadet program available
Cons
- –Lower starting FO salary compared to US/Gulf carriers
About Each Airline
Copa Airlines
Panama's flagship carrier and a Star Alliance member, Copa connects the Americas through its Hub of the Americas at Tocumen International.
Full Copa Airlines career guide →Avianca
One of the oldest airlines in the world, Avianca is a key carrier in the Americas with a hub in Bogota.
Full Avianca career guide →Calculate Your Salary
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