How much does it cost to become a Starliner captain?

One of the most common questions in our admissions inbox is how long and how much it takes to become captain of a Halcyon Starliner. It is a fair question, because it is a long road. Here are the real numbers.

Step one is First Solo: Foundation Flight, 14 weeks and 48,000 credits, ending in the Private Spaceflight Licence. Step two is Shuttle Operations, 12 weeks and 86,000 credits, ending in the Commercial Pilot Licence (Orbital). At that point you can be hired, typically as a Kestrel first officer.

Step three is experience and a heavy type rating. The Passenger Command Licence requires at least one heavy rating and 3,000 hours of multi-crew flying. Many of our liner captains took the Heavy Freight Type Rating (16 weeks, 168,000 credits) and flew Atlas freighters for several years, while others moved up within a passenger line from shuttles to Starliner first officer.

Step four is Passenger Liner Command itself: 24 weeks and 235,000 credits, with 220 simulator hours and 160 hours in the left-hand seat under a training captain.

Added together, self-funded tuition for that path comes to 537,000 credits. In practice very few people pay that. Shuttle Operations seats are often sponsored by passenger lines and launch operators, Atlas ratings by freight unions, and almost every Passenger Liner Command place is funded by the line that will employ the new captain. A typical captain today has paid only for their First Solo and part of their commercial licence.

Time is the bigger cost. For most of our graduates, the journey from first solo to Starliner captain takes about twelve years, much of it building hours. Fewer than 400 pilots in the inner system hold the Passenger Command Licence, and the course has a nine-month waitlist.

If that sounds daunting, remember that every stage is a real job. Kestrel pilots, Atlas officers and Starliner first officers all have good careers. Come to an information evening and we will help you map a path that fits your life.