The mean is the best yardstick, what you don't know readily is the metrics included. There are several pages in the govt report that discuss methodology. For airline pilots it looks dubious, and BTW, it is done by surveys of airline companies. Guess managements fill out ridiculous numbers and send them in,
I looked at the Bureau of labor Statistics. They show airline pilots and navigators between $95-$97/hr at 39+ hours weekly in June 2005. If they then show $135,040 median, then they used $135.04/hr at 1000 hours annually. Someone had to boost the numbers. It doesn't add up. Also, the sampling and non sampling errors are in the 13 % range, so basically worthless data for all intents except for managements during negotiations telling you why you need to be paid less.