A pilot operates an aircraft and is legally accountable for the safety of everyone on board. In South Africa pilots are licensed by the South African Civil Aviation Authority and every duty in the role sits inside a framework of regulation, procedure and recurrent checking.
This guide sets out pilot duties and responsibilities and how they differ by type of flying. It is part of the wider job duties guide. It is general career information and not operational or regulatory guidance.
What Does a Pilot Do?
A pilot plans the flight, checks the aircraft and its documentation, briefs the crew, flies or monitors the aircraft through each phase, manages abnormal situations, and completes the technical and flight records afterwards.
Most of the job is not hand-flying. It is decision-making about weather, fuel, weight and balance, serviceability and whether the flight should depart at all, together with the disciplined use of checklists and standard operating procedures that make a two-person crew work reliably.
The pilot in command carries final authority for the aircraft and may deviate from procedure where safety requires it, and then must account for that decision. Alongside that authority sits a personal duty not to fly when unfit through illness, fatigue or medication.
Pilot duties are structured around the phases of a flight rather than a list of tasks, and each phase has its own checklist, briefing and division of responsibility between the pilot flying and the pilot monitoring. That structure is what makes performance repeatable across crews who may not have flown together before.
Key Pilot Duties and Responsibilities
- Planning the flight, including route, fuel, weather and alternates.
- Checking aircraft documentation, technical log and serviceability.
- Conducting pre-flight inspections and confirming weight and balance.
- Briefing the crew on the flight, threats and expected procedures.
- Operating the aircraft in accordance with standard operating procedures.
- Communicating with air traffic control and complying with clearances.
- Monitoring systems, fuel, weather and aircraft performance in flight.
- Managing abnormal and emergency situations using the approved procedures.
- Ensuring the safety of passengers, crew and cargo throughout.
- Completing flight documentation, technical log entries and defect reports.
- Reporting incidents and hazards through the safety management system.
- Maintaining licence currency, medical validity and recurrent training.
Daily Tasks of a Pilot
- Pre-flight: report for duty, review the flight plan, weather, notices and fuel.
- At the aircraft: external inspection, cockpit setup, documentation and crew briefing.
- In flight: fly or monitor, manage the flight path, fuel and communications.
- After landing: secure the aircraft, complete the technical log and report defects.
- Periodically: simulator checks, line checks, medicals and recurrent training.
Pilot Skills and Competencies
- Situational awareness: knowing where the aircraft is going, not just where it is.
- Decision-making: deciding early, particularly the decision not to go.
- Procedural discipline: checklists used as designed, every time.
- Crew resource management: speaking up and listening when someone else does.
- Composure: working the problem calmly when systems fail.
- Self-discipline on fitness: declaring unfitness rather than pushing through.
Pilot Duties by Workplace or Industry
Scheduled Airlines
Multi-crew operations to published schedules, with strict standard operating procedures, rostered duty and rest periods and regular simulator and line checks.
Charter and Business Aviation
Varied destinations and short notice, with the pilot often handling flight planning, passenger handling and ground arrangements personally.
Bush, Game and Utility Flying
Unprepared strips, limited facilities, single-pilot operations and greater responsibility for loading, fuel planning and the aircraft’s daily condition.
Flight Instruction and Training
Duties add briefing, teaching, assessing student progress and maintaining training records, while remaining responsible for the safety of every flight.
Across every type of flying the underlying accountability is identical: the pilot in command decides whether the flight proceeds, and is answerable for that decision regardless of commercial or schedule pressure.
Pilot Duties for a CV
Give licence type, ratings, total and type hours and medical status. Use the duties for a CV guide for the method.
- SACAA Commercial Pilot Licence with instrument and multi-engine ratings.
- 2 400 total hours, including 900 hours on type as pilot in command.
- Operated scheduled multi-crew flights under company standard operating procedures.
- Maintained current medical, licence renewals and recurrent simulator checks.
Related Job Roles and Responsibilities
These guides cover the roles and next steps most closely related to this one.
- Driver duties and responsibilities
- Safety Officer duties and responsibilities
- Control Room Operator duties and responsibilities
- First Aider duties and responsibilities
- Job duties
Frequently Asked Questions About Pilot Duties
What are the duties of a pilot?
Planning the flight and checking weather and fuel, inspecting the aircraft and its documentation, confirming weight and balance, briefing the crew, operating the aircraft to standard procedures, communicating with air traffic control, monitoring systems and performance, managing emergencies, completing technical records and maintaining licence currency.
How do you become a pilot in South Africa?
Through an approved training organisation, progressing from a private licence to a commercial licence with the required hours, theoretical examinations, ratings and a valid aviation medical. Confirm the current requirements with the South African Civil Aviation Authority.
Who is in charge of an aircraft?
The pilot in command, who holds final authority for the operation and safety of the aircraft and everyone on board, and is accountable for the decisions taken during the flight.
Are pilot duty hours regulated?
Yes. Flight and duty time limitations and minimum rest periods are set by civil aviation regulations to manage fatigue, and pilots also carry a personal responsibility not to operate when unfit. Confirm current limits with SACAA and your operator.
This page is general career information. Civil aviation regulations, your operator’s operations manual and SACAA requirements govern the role and take precedence over this guide.
Last reviewed: 2 September 2026