
Analyst - Pilot PBS and Awards
Chicago, ILJob$67–87K/yrSeen todaySeen in employer's feed today
Most applications go out cold — see where you stand first. No sign-up to start.
You apply on the employer's site, with no Olive account needed.
Watch jobs like this. New roles like this one near Chicago, IL, by email.
Don't just apply. Show up ready.
Olive works from this exact posting.
At a glance
Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.
Requirements
Credentials this posting asks for.
Job overview
The Analyst supports United’s monthly pilot preferential bidding system (PBS) award process through planning, analysis, execution, analytical modeling, and tool development. The role evaluates staffing scenarios, improves workflows, and provides insights to Flight Operations leadership while coordinating with cross-functional teams and pilot union representatives. It also identifies opportunities to integrate AI-enabled solutions into existing processes.
Skills & qualifications
Skills
Qualifications
Benefits
Full job description
Achieving our goals starts with supporting yours. Grow your career, access top-tier health and wellness benefits, build lasting connections with your team and our customers, and travel the world using our extensive route network.
Come join us to create what’s next. Let’s define tomorrow, together.
Description
Get ready for a career at the leading edge of the airline industry! Our Flight Operations team works hard to connect people and unite the world safely, reliably and efficiently every single day. From industry leadership and pioneering technologies to next-level training — our Flight Ops team hires, trains, qualifies and supports the best pilots in the industry. The moments we share in the air and on the ground with our customers and our colleagues make United a special place to work and a great way to fly, together.
Job Overview and Responsibilities
At United, our pilots bid for their monthly flight schedules using a preferential bidding system (PBS). The PBS team manages this process and executes the monthly award which matches individual pilot bid preferences with operational and contractual requirements to create a complete and legal schedule for each pilot every month. The Analyst is responsible for supporting the monthly pilot award process, including planning, analysis, execution, tool and dashboard development, and analytical modeling. The Analyst will demonstrate a strong attention to detail, and a commitment to delivering high-quality awards, supporting process improvements, evaluating strategic staffing scenarios, and providing meaningful insights from each bid month to Flight Operations leadership. The Analyst will also identify opportunities to adapt and integrate AI-enabled solutions into the team’s existing workflows and processes. Working cross-functionally with other Flight Operations groups, including Workforce Planning, Training Scheduling, Pairings, Pilot Support, and representatives from the pilot union, the Analyst supports successful award execution and operational integrity.
-
Develops and maintains tools, dashboards, databases, and analytical models by leveraging bid and award data, analytical techniques, and reporting platforms to improve award execution, streamline workflows, and support data-driven decision-making throughout the monthly PBS award process
-
Performs retrospective analysis of bid periods by reviewing award data, identifying trends and performance gaps, and presenting findings to leadership to support continuous improvement
-
Evaluates planning scenarios, assesses staffing risks and trade-offs, and works with cross-functional stakeholders to optimize pilot reserve coverage prior to input finalization to support successful awards and schedule planning outcomes
-
Participates in the monthly PBS award production cycle, including pre-award testing, evaluating schedule solvability, participating in award optimization, and performing post-award activities to ensure accurate, timely, and contractually compliant pilot schedule awards that meet staffing and planning requirements
-
Collaborates cross-functionally with Workforce Planning, Training Scheduling, Pairings, Pilot Support, and other stakeholders to support accurate, timely, and efficient execution of monthly PBS award responsibilities
Qualifications
What’s needed to succeed (Minimum Qualifications):
-
Bachelor's degree
-
1+ years of experience in data analytics, operational planning, scheduling, or a related field
-
Demonstrated intellectual curiosity and self-motivation to heed signals in data, investigate root causes, and develop solutions
-
Experience applying data analysis, quantitative problem solving, and critical thinking to evaluate business challenges and support decision making
-
Ability to build and maintain positive relationships with immediate team members, pilots, and Labor Representatives
-
Ability to work collaboratively across teams to solve problems and support team interactions and effectiveness
-
Ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively in a fast-paced environment
-
Ability to validate data sources and analytical outputs to ensure accuracy, reliability, and relevance to business needs
-
Analytical and technical skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Excel and experience using SQL or other programming/query language to extract, combine, validate, and analyze operational data
-
Ability to meet contractual operational responsibilities and deadlines, including providing periodic evening and weekend support during the monthly award production process
-
Strong communication and presentation skills, including explaining analytical findings to non-technical audiences
-
Must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer without sponsorship
-
Successful completion of interview required to meet job qualification
-
Reliable, punctual attendance is an essential function of the position
What will help you propel from the pack (Preferred Qualifications):
-
Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, Data Analytics, Business, or related field
-
Knowledge of optimization software
-
Experience developing reports, dashboards, analytical models, or automated decision-support tools using Power BI, Python, or comparable analytics platforms
-
Familiarity with airline operations, crew planning, scheduling, or flight operations environments
-
Demonstrates an understanding of the capabilities and limitations of generative AI tools and effectively leverages them for research, analysis, content creation, and problem-solving. Applies critical thinking to validate AI-generated outputs while adhering to company policies related to responsible AI use, data privacy, and security.
The base pay range for this role is $66,500.00 to $86,616.00.
The base salary range/hourly rate listed is dependent on job-related, factors such as experience, education, and skills. This position is also eligible for bonus and/or long-term incentive compensation awards.
You may be eligible for the following competitive benefits: medical, dental, vision, life, accident & disability, parental leave, employee assistance program, commuter, paid holidays, paid time off, 401(k) and flight privileges.
United Airlines is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We recruit, employ, train, compensate, and promote without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, or any other protected category under applicable law. We provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. To request an accommodation, contact [email protected]
How this job compares
Set against the 5,368 open Data Analyst jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 12, 2026.
- Pay
- This posting$67–87K/yr
- Illinois median$87–125K/yr128 salary ranges
- US median$87–132K/yr3,577 salary ranges
This range's midpoint, $77K, is 29% below the Illinois median midpoint ($108K) — in the lowest quarter of Data Analyst salary ranges in Illinois.
- Openings
- Olive Jobs lists 175 open Data Analyst jobs in Illinois and 5,368 across the US. 7% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
- Hiring the most in Illinois
- Capital One14 open
- Walgreens8 open
- Publicis Groupe6 open
- Experience
- This posting asks for at least 1 year of experience — less than three in four Data Analyst postings that state a minimum ask for (median 4 years, across 4,231 postings).
- Education
- This posting asks for a bachelor's degree; 2,184 of the 5,368 open Data Analyst jobs (41%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.
Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 12, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.
Prepare for this role
You've read the whole posting — now see how you match it.



