Key takeaways
- Aircraft pilots record 36.7 fatal injuries per 100,000 workers against 3.3 across the workforce — but the figure is driven by general aviation, not the airlines.
- Commercial airline pilots often pay less than private pilots. Underwriters price recurrent training, two-crew operation and maintenance regimes.
- Where a flat extra applies to private flying it runs $2–$5 per $1,000 a year — about $42 to $104 a month on $250,000.
- Logged hours decide the band. Under 100 hours is heavily rated; 1,000+ hours or five years certified opens the best aviation rates.
- An aviation exclusion rider cuts the premium by removing cover for the exact risk you were rated on. Sometimes right, never a default.
See what cover would cost you
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Where the job actually sits
Flying is a rated occupation, and the federal data explains why: aircraft pilots and flight engineers record 36.7 fatal injuries per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers, against 3.3 across the workforce. Seventy-three pilots died at work in 2024.
| Occupation | Fatal injuries per 100,000 | Deaths in 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Logging workers | 110.4 | 51 |
| Fishing and hunting workers | 88.8 | 24 |
| Roofers | 48.7 | 104 |
| Structural iron and steel workers | 37.8 | 14 |
| Refuse and recyclable material collectors | 37.4 | 36 |
| Aircraft pilots and flight engineers | 36.7 | 73 |
| Helpers, construction trades | 35.8 | 18 |
| Driver/sales workers and truck drivers | 25.7 | 950 |
| Welding, soldering and brazing workers | 6.9 | 42 |
| All workers | 3.3 | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries — rate and number of fatal work injuries in selected occupations, 2024 reference year, released 19 February 2026. Rates are per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers. Source.
That figure covers everyone who flies for a living, and it conceals the single most important fact for anyone reading this page: the aggregate is driven by general aviation, not by the airlines. Scheduled airline operations and private light aircraft are not the same risk, and carriers do not price them as though they were.
Why airline pilots often pay less than private ones
It surprises most applicants. An airline captain flying 700 hours a year in a two-crew jet under an airline safety programme frequently qualifies at standard rates. A weekend private pilot with 80 hours in a single-engine aircraft frequently does not.
The logic is straightforward once stated. Underwriters are pricing structure, not glamour: recurrent training, crew redundancy, maintenance regimes, dispatch rules and route infrastructure. General aviation has less of all of it, and the accident statistics follow. If you fly professionally for an airline, say so plainly and expect to be treated better than the headline occupation suggests.
The numbers that decide your rate
Three answers do most of the work on an aviation questionnaire: total logged hours, hours flown in the last twelve months, and hours in the type you currently fly. Published thresholds run roughly as follows:
| Experience | How carriers generally treat it |
|---|---|
| Student pilot | The most heavily rated band. Some carriers decline outright until certification. |
| Under 100 hours | Elevated flat extra at most carriers. |
| 100+ solo hours | Better rates open up at several carriers. |
| 1,000+ hours, or 5 years certified with 100 in type | Best available aviation rates; standard is possible at some carriers. |
Source: Policygenius, Life Insurance for Private Pilots, published 10 January 2024 — aviation flat extras of $2 to $5 per $1,000 of coverage a year and the flight-hour thresholds carriers use. Source. This source is older than the rate studies cited above; treat the figures as indicative rather than current.
Where a flat extra does apply to private flying, published figures put it at $2 to $5 per $1,000 of cover a year — $500 to $1,250 a year on a $250,000 policy, or roughly $42 to $104 a month on top of the ordinary premium. Instrument ratings, type ratings and a clean FAA record all help; aerobatics, crop dusting, bush flying, test flying and instructing all hurt.
Which carriers write pilots at standard rates?
Start with your ZIP code — availability varies by state.
The aviation exclusion rider, and why to think hard about it
Carriers will often offer a cheaper policy on one condition: an aviation exclusion rider. It removes the flat extra, and in exchange the policy does not pay if you die in an aviation accident.
Read that twice. For a working pilot, the exclusion carves out the one cause of death the occupation actually adds. You keep cover for cancer and car crashes — which you would have had anyway — and give up cover for the specific risk you were rated on. It is a lower premium for a policy that does noticeably less.
That does not make it always wrong. If you fly rarely, are about to stop, or simply cannot afford the rated premium and the alternative is no cover at all, an excluded policy is better than nothing. But it is a trade to make deliberately, and the question to ask the agent is whether the exclusion can be removed later on review — at some carriers it can.
What it costs
Start from the ordinary market rate for a $250,000 20-year term policy, then add the aviation flat extra where one applies:
| Age | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|
| 30 | $20 | $23 |
| 40 | $28 | $35 |
| 50 | $59 | $77 |
| 60 | $157 | $215 |
Source: MoneyGeek, How Much Does a $250,000 Life Insurance Policy Cost?, updated 16 September 2026 — market-wide averages across more than 30 carriers, non-smoker of average health. Source.
For a 40-year-old man that is $35 a month unrated, and roughly $77 to $139 with a private-pilot flat extra. As with every rated occupation, the spread between carriers is wider than the spread between ages. Full $250,000 rate tables.
Frequently asked questions
Can pilots get life insurance?
Yes. Aviation is a rated occupation rather than a decline at most carriers, and commercial airline pilots frequently qualify at standard rates. Private pilots are more often charged a flat extra, offered an aviation exclusion rider, or both — and carriers differ widely, so applying to more than one matters.
How much more do private pilots pay?
Published figures put aviation flat extras at $2 to $5 per $1,000 of coverage a year. On a $250,000 policy that is $500 to $1,250 a year, or about $42 to $104 a month on top of the ordinary premium. Total logged hours and hours in the last twelve months are the main variables.
What is an aviation exclusion rider?
It removes the flat extra in exchange for the policy not paying out if you die in an aviation accident. For an active pilot it excludes the specific risk the rating exists for, so it should be a deliberate choice rather than a default. Ask whether the carrier will review the exclusion off later.
Do airline pilots really pay less than private pilots?
Often, yes. Underwriters price the structure around the flying — recurrent training, two-crew operation, maintenance regimes and dispatch rules — and scheduled airline operations have far more of it than general aviation. The federal fatality rate of 36.7 per 100,000 covers all pilots and is driven largely by general aviation.