Career Overlap Transition record Edition 1 · ESCO v1.2.1
Table 1Transition record

air force pilottocommercial pilot

A air force pilot already meets 71% of what the commercial pilot role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.

From air force pilot
71%
Overlap1
To commercial pilot
32 Skills carried over
12 Required, not held
41.3 Difficulty2
Career overlap Strong match

71%

Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

41.3/ 100

1 Share of the commercial pilot role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the air force pilot profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.

Why

Why this move works

A commercial pilot role treats 30 of its required skills as things a air force pilot already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

  • air traffic control operations
  • air transport law
  • aircraft flight control systems
  • analyse weather forecast
  • apply signalling control procedures
  • aviation meteorology

What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 32 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A commercial pilot role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a air force pilot background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held execute flight plans communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held create a flight plan management skills
  • already held apply signalling control procedures working with machinery and specialised equipment
  • already held undertake procedures to meet aircraft flight requirements assisting and caring
  • already held ensure ongoing compliance with regulations assisting and caring
  • already held implement airside safety procedures assisting and caring

All 32 carried skills, including the 30 the commercial pilot role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 13 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.

Skill to acquire Tier
01 assisting and caring 4 required
  • required, not held apply airport standards and regulations required
  • required, not held follow airport safety procedures required
  • required, not held follow ethical code of conduct in transport services required
  • required, not held apply company policies required
02 communication, collaboration and creativity 3 required, 1 supplementary
  • required, not held respond to changing navigation circumstances required
  • required, not held work in an aviation team required
  • required, not held write work-related reports required
  • optional, not held listen actively optional
03 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 required
  • required, not held airport planning required
04 handling and moving 1 required
  • required, not held balance transportation cargo required
05 information skills 1 required
  • required, not held identify airport safety hazards required
06 management skills 1 required
  • required, not held make independent operating decisions required

1 further area in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a commercial pilot role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 32 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held air traffic control operations knowledge
  • already held air transport law knowledge
  • already held aircraft flight control systems knowledge
  • already held analyse weather forecast skill
  • already held apply signalling control procedures skill
  • already held aviation meteorology knowledge
  • already held civil aviation regulations knowledge
  • already held common aviation safety regulations knowledge
  • already held comply with air traffic control operations skill
  • already held ensure compliance with civil aviation regulations skill
  • already held ensure ongoing compliance with regulations skill
  • already held execute flight plans skill
  • already held geographic areas knowledge
  • already held have spatial awareness skill
  • already held implement airside safety procedures skill
  • already held operate cockpit control panels skill
  • already held operate radar equipment skill
  • already held operate radio equipment skill
  • already held operate radio navigation instruments skill
  • already held operate two-way radio systems skill
  • already held perform flight manoeuvres skill
  • already held perform risk analysis skill
  • already held perform routine flight operations checks skill
  • already held perform take off and landing skill
  • already held read 3D displays skill
  • already held read maps skill
  • already held undertake procedures to meet aircraft flight requirements skill
  • already held use different communication channels skill
  • already held use meteorological information skill
  • already held visual flight rules knowledge
  • already held adapt to changing situations skill
  • already held create a flight plan skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
Skill to acquire Tier
07 services 1 required
  • required, not held pre-flight procedures for IFR flights required
1 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to acquire Tier
  • optional, not held listen actively optional
13 held skills the commercial pilot role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role air force operations knowledge
  • not needed by the target role apply air force procedures skill
  • not needed by the target role apply military aviation regulations skill
  • not needed by the target role collect real-time geolocation information skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure compliance with types of weapons skill
  • not needed by the target role identify security threats skill
  • not needed by the target role keep task records skill
  • not needed by the target role military aviation knowledge
  • not needed by the target role military code knowledge
  • not needed by the target role organise aircraft maintenance skill
  • not needed by the target role patrol areas skill
  • not needed by the target role perform search and rescue missions skill
  • not needed by the target role surveillance radars knowledge
2 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to acquire Tier
  • required, not held airport planning required
  • required, not held pre-flight procedures for IFR flights required
Index
Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.