NOC 72600 job description: air pilot duties and responsibilities
- Conduct pre-flight inspection of aircraft and check passenger and cargo distribution to ensure that weight and balance specifications are met
- Coordinate flight activities with ground crews and air-traffic control, inform crew members of flight and test procedures and direct activities of aircraft crew during flights
- Contact control towers for takeoff clearances, arrival instructions and other information
- Conduct in-flight tests and monitor functioning of aircraft equipment and systems during flights, maintain communications with flight dispatchers and weather forecasters and respond to and report in-flight emergencies and malfunctions
- Prepare flight evaluation reports
- Train pilots to use new equipment, or prepare them for examinations to revalidate or upgrade existing licences
- May fly new or experimental planes to examine their flight performance and safety
- May participate in search and rescue operations, forest firefighting, aerial surveying, crop dusting and other services.
- Inspect aircraft prior to takeoff according to pre-flight checklist and verify passenger and cargo distribution to ensure that weight and balance specifications are met
- Assist air pilots in monitoring aircraft systems, equipment and functions during flight
- Make in-flight repairs, such as replacing fuses and adjusting instruments, and follow emergency procedures to compensate for equipment malfunction or failure
- Perform post-flight inspections, record equipment malfunctions and corrective actions taken during flight and report required repairs to ground maintenance personnel.
- Instruct student pilots in procedures and techniques of flying aircraft and in ground-school subjects such as navigation, radio procedures and flying regulations
- Train licensed pilots for additional certification.
Job titles under NOC 72600
See every job title and its code in the A–Z job title index, or all TEER 2 jobs.
Is NOC 72600 eligible for Express Entry?
By TEER, yes. TEER 2 is inside the TEER 0 to 3 range that the Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Experience Class accept. You still need qualifying work experience, language test results and enough CRS points to get an invitation. Category-based draws and provincial nominee programs use their own occupation lists.
| Program | TEER check | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Skilled Worker | TEER qualifies | TEER 2 is within TEER 0 to 3 |
| Canadian Experience Class | TEER qualifies | TEER 2 is within TEER 0 to 3 |
| Federal Skilled Trades | Not a listed trade | Only certain trade groups qualify. Check IRCC |
| Spouse's open work permit | Qualifies | On IRCC's TEER 2–3 list. SOWP rules |
Category-based draws: NOC 72600 is on IRCC's Transport list (checked 2026-10-16). Under NOC 2016, TEER 2 was skill level B ("NOC B").
Category-based Express Entry draws and provincial nominee programs use their own occupation lists. Check the current lists on IRCC's Express Entry page and provincial nominee page.
NOC 72600: common questions
What is NOC 72600?
NOC 72600 is the code for air pilots, flight engineers and flying instructors in Canada's National Occupational Classification (NOC 2021). Its first digit, 7, is the broad category and its second digit, 2, is the TEER level. Immigration forms, job offers and LMIA applications use this five-digit code.
What TEER is NOC 72600?
NOC 72600 is TEER 2. Occupations that usually need a college program of two to three years or an apprenticeship of two to five years, or that carry supervisory or significant safety responsibilities. Under the older NOC 2016 system, TEER 2 lines up with skill level B.
Is NOC 72600 eligible for Express Entry and PR?
By TEER, yes. TEER 2 is inside the TEER 0 to 3 range that the Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Experience Class accept. You still need qualifying work experience, language test results and enough CRS points to get an invitation. Category-based draws and provincial nominee programs use their own occupation lists.
Is NOC 72600 in a category-based Express Entry draw?
Yes. As of IRCC's list dated 2026-10-16, NOC 72600 is in the transport category. Category-based draws invite candidates with at least 6 months of continuous work experience in one of the listed occupations, and IRCC updates the lists from time to time.
Is NOC 72600 eligible for a spousal open work permit (SOWP)?
Yes. NOC 72600 is on IRCC's list of TEER 2 occupations that qualify, so a worker in this job can support a spouse's open work permit, as long as their own work permit has at least 16 months left when the spouse applies (IRCC page modified 2026-06-12).
What is the NOC code for an air pilot?
Air pilot is listed under NOC 72600, air pilots, flight engineers and flying instructors. The job title alone does not decide your code: your duties should match the main duties of NOC 72600.
How do I know if NOC 72600 is my NOC code?
Compare what you actually do with the main duties listed for NOC 72600, not just your job title. IRCC expects your duties to match the lead statement and most of the main duties of the code you choose. If they fit another code better, use that one. You can paste your duties into nocfinder to see how they line up, duty by duty.
Source: ESDC NOC 2021 · IRCC program pages. Not legal advice.