Yeah, I'm not sure how to work this out. I could factor every airline's min guarantee for comparison, but that isn't really helpful either, because how many pilots only collect min guarantee year after year?

I like using the 1000 hours a year for a benchmark. For a couple reasons. A.) It doesn't seem unusual to me for a pilot to credit an average 83.33 hours. B.) Using 1000 per year allows for the hourly dollar amount to directly reflect the annual income. Very easy for making direct comparisons. And my intention with these charts is not to give someone an idea of what they can make their first year, but what they can expect to make over 12 years. Eventually I want to build a chart that can show you what you'll make if you upgrade at year 5 at Spirit vs Year 10 at Southwest - that sort of thing.

What I may do to address your concern is build a second chart using min guarantee as the primary data point. Do you or anyone else have any ideas of how you'd like to see it?

I do GREATLY appreciate the feedback. And hearing from you guys makes me want to keep developing this. Thank you!