They Can Barely Drive, They're Flying Planes: The Surprising Rise of Teen Pilots

More teenagers are entering aviation careers before finishing high school, encouraged by school programs, scholarships and an industry seeking to replenish its pilot workforce. The FAA counted 914 people ages 16 to 19 with commercial flight certificates in 2025, up from 693 in 2024. The trend gained attention after 20-year-old co-pilot Nathalia Filgueiras died in a Learjet crash in Florida. Investigators have not established who was flying the plane; experts say the person handling radio calls is typically not at the controls. Filgueiras had earned a private pilot’s license at 17, and audio from the aircraft captured her relaying information during its descent.

Aviation organizations have expanded outreach as airlines face continued growth and retirements, while high-school programs attract strong demand: more than 34,000 students are taking an aviation curriculum at over 1,700 schools. At Las Vegas’s Rancho High School, students study for FAA exams before logging flight hours, and some have soloed as juniors. The licensing path remains demanding regardless of age: private pilots must be at least 17, commercial pilots 18 with 250 flight hours, and airline pilots generally 23 with 1,500 hours. New commercial pilots often instruct or fly charter aircraft to build experience, learning alongside veteran captains. Young pilots’ early start can accelerate that process, but it does not bypass standardized tests, training or experience requirements.