Hiring boom and a pilot shortage are to different things. My words are no shortage of people, who want to be pilots, or pilots who want to be professional pilots or professional pilots who want to be airline pilots. I always use the additional phrase "qualified and experienced" when I discuss any type of pilot shortage. I go on to say that I do no believe that we will ever see a true shortage like we had in the mid-sixties where the airlines were paying for training - not in my lifetime.
What the editors at aviation magazines choose to pull from our news releases I cannot control. To see what the entire news release says go to
http://www.jet-jobs.com/guestframe.html. Please note all of the detailed furloughed pilot information that puts the real picture in perspective. There is and never has been anything but a denial of a shortage from AIR, Inc. or me.
From 1993 to 2001 there were over 106,000 new jobs at the 200+ airlines we track - if that is not a boom then what is? Sure some jobs were lost after deregulation but many more were created too. I guess it is a test of our optimisim as to whether the glass is half-full or half-empty.
My publisher letter from the thick of the hiring boom follows:
Pilot shortage?
What pilot shortage?
Dear AIR, Inc. member and ALPC Readers:
Lately, when I talk to members of the media—national newspapers, magazines, TV, and radio—their questions almost always include the assumption that there is a pilot shortage. They all seem to be feeding on the shortages at the major airlines due to short-term labor unrest, or on schedule reductions at some of the smaller airlines. I am always offended by their fixation, because without qualifiers, this view is inaccurate and quite honestly, unacceptable.
While it’s true that major airlines like United and Delta have pointed to a lack of pilots as the reason for their recent flight cancellations, when we talk about pilot shortages, we must remember there are 635,000 licensed pilots in the U.S., plus nearly 30,000 military pilots. There is no lack of people who want to be pilots, no lack of pilots who want to be professionals, and no lack of professional pilots who want to be airline pilots. There is, however, a shortage of qualified and experienced pilot applicants that the airlines are used to seeing—especially at the regional level.
The average qualifications for pilots getting a major airline job confirm that these airlines are not facing an applicant shortage. The average civilian pilot is 34 years old and has 5,300 hours—more than 21 times the FAA minimum of 250 hours to do the job—and military pilots average 37 years old, with over 3,300 hours total. The airlines themselves set the standards for both minimum requirements and competitive qualifications, and if they need to, there is plenty of room to reduce their minimum and/or competitive levels to create an entirely new group of “qualified and experienced” pilots. The worst that might happen would be the need for additional training to replace the difference in qualifications or experience. I am always mindful that the military successfully places pilots in the most sophisticated aircraft for extremely demanding missions after less than 300 hours of flight training—so it can be done.
The majors will hire close to 5,000 pilots this year, representing about eight percent of their 63,000 pilots—busy, but manageable, although many major airlines have been limited in hiring by the number of pilots they can train. National carriers will hire about 6,800 new pilots, or about 35 percent of their current 19,500 pilot workforce—which probably is a little too hectic, but they’re getting the job done. The regional airlines, both jet and non-jet, will hire about 2,650 pilots each (5,300 total), representing a whopping 73 percent of their 7,200 pilots—which is very hard to do and some shortages are being reported.
The “pilot shortage” problem has more to do with qualified and experienced pilots not being in the right place at the right time, than with an overall pilot shortfall. The choice for some airlines may be to over-hire and stockpile pilots, or reduce the flying they do until they have the time to find and train replacement pilots, which easily could take several months. The point is, there is no lack of applicants; there may just be a shortage of qualified and experienced pilots at a particular airline, at least for the moment.
A few airlines, mostly in the regional category, have been unable to fill their classes. After experiencing more than 20 years of pilot surplus, it is easy for them to forget to reach out to applicants. In working with these airlines we often find they are not taking the steps they might to recruit for other career fields, like advertising and attending job fairs to promote opportunities at their airline. Occasionally, application/screening fees or high hiring minimums must be reevaluated to bring in more pilots more quickly. Usually, with some minor adjustments toward traditional recruiting techniques, these airlines are flush with qualified and experienced pilot applicants again.
Remember, most applicants are well above the FAA minimums to do the job, and all the airlines need to do is adjust their hiring standards to get all the “qualified and experienced” pilot applicants they need. Meanwhile, your job remains to be the best-qualified, most-experienced pilot you can until you get the job at the airline where you expect to retire.
Happy job hunting!
Kit Darby
President & Publisher
