Thanos Pascalis studied Aeronautical Engineering in the UK, followed by a Masters in Air Transport Engineering from Cranfield Institute of Technology. He settled in Hatfield, UK, working for British Aerospace Commercial Aircraft within the Airworthiness section. Following that, he held Engineering and Maintenance Manager positions assisting in the setting up of the first Greek private airlines South East European and Apollo Airlines. In 1996 he returned to the UK to join Monarch Aircraft Engineering in Luton as Customer Support Manager, looking after the company's third party maintenance business. Thanos returned to Greece again in 1999 for the startup of Aegean Airlines, taking the position of Technical Director, responsible among other things for the EASA Part 145 and CAMO approval of the company. In early 2009, Thanos was appointed Chief Operating Officer and Accountable Manager of the new private Olympic Air with responsibilities for both technical and flight operations. The company successfully bought and leased 40 aircraft within 8 months and re- launched the iconic Olympic brand. He also held the position of CEO within the separate Engineering entity (Olympic Engineering) owned by MIG. In February 2011 he was appointed CEO of Olympic Air responsible for over 1100 personnel and 250 daily flights.

In 2013 he was a founding member of Elix Aviation Capital in Dublin, a specialized Turboprop Lessor, taking up the position of COO and Board member. The company acquired 78 turboprop aircraft in two years with customers worldwide. In 2018 was appointed CEO of Ellinair Airlines an IT specialized carrier based in Thessaloniki. Next steps included the positions of COO and CDO at Marathon Airlines and CEO of Cyprus Airways responsible for 300 personnel of all disciplines within the airline.