Mean vs Median Pay in Irish Aircraft Leasing, 2019 to 2025
Quick answer
Total pay in Irish aircraft leasing rose 45% between 2019 and 2025 while headcount rose 6%. The average is more than double the median, so a few very large salaries drive the headline.
Pay in Irish aircraft leasing is often quoted as an average. The CSO publishes both the mean and the median, and the gap between them is large enough that the choice matters. All figures here come from table ALIA01 and cover 2019 to 2025.
Total pay and headcount
Total earnings of persons employed in the industry were €772 million in 2025, up from €534 million in 2019, an increase of 45%. Over the same period the number of people employed grew from 2,914 to 3,096, an increase of 6%. Nearly all of the growth in the pay bill is growth in pay per person, not hiring.
The mean and the median
| Year | Median weekly pay | Mean weekly pay | Mean annual earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | €1,745 | €3,757 | €183,146 |
| 2020 | €1,881 | €3,554 | €179,345 |
| 2021 | €1,938 | €4,018 | €196,672 |
| 2022 | €2,116 | €4,115 | €181,737 |
| 2023 | €2,095 | €3,773 | €173,420 |
| 2024 | €2,313 | €4,446 | €204,626 |
| 2025 | €2,434 | €5,193 | €249,316 |
Two patterns stand out.
The median climbed steadily; the mean did not. Median weekly pay rose by 39% over six years and fell in only one of them (a small dip in 2023). Mean annual earnings fell in 2020, in 2022 and again in 2023, then jumped 22% in 2025 alone. When the mean is volatile and the median is calm, the movement is usually coming from the top of the pay distribution rather than from the typical worker.
The mean is about twice the median every year. In 2025 mean weekly pay was 2.1 times the median, and in 2019 it was 2.2 times. The ratio has hardly changed, so the 2025 jump lifted both measures, but the middle of the distribution still sits far below the average.
A note on the units
CSO publishes weekly pay and annual earnings as separate measures and they do not convert exactly. €249,316 divided by 52 is about €4,794, not the €5,193 shown for mean weekly pay, so the two are measured on different bases. Compare weekly figures with weekly figures and annual with annual, and do not divide one to get the other.
Reading it carefully
These are aggregate figures for companies the CSO classifies as aircraft lessors. They include everyone on the payroll of those companies, from analysts to senior executives, and say nothing about any one employer or role. Latest-year figures are provisional and may be revised.
Related: How Big Is Ireland’s Aircraft Leasing Industry? and Men and Women in Irish Aircraft Leasing.