House Passes Airline Safety and Pilot Training Improvement Act of 2009

[sweptback]

Among other things, this would require every airline pilot to have an ATP. It passed overwhelmingly, 409 to 11. Now to the Senate...

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/10/14/2098878.aspx

 

[callowayhd]

this will only cost the airlines more $ trying to get all the FO's typed in the aircraft

 

[flyrunner80]

Yeah and young FO's will know be saying F*Ck off I know what I'm doing. . . I'm typed in this RJ!! When "Good" Captain's try to pass down advice or good techniques.

 

[sstearns2]

It will also cost all future airline pilots a bunch of extra money for yet another checkride and they get to do it in a $250/hr twin too. We can all hope that the airlines will pay for the FO's to get an ATP. It seems like they could do it easily during PCs.

Time to write my senators.

Scott

 

[CA1900]

this will only cost the airlines more $ trying to get all the FO's typed in the aircraft

An ATP does not necessarily mean a type rating.

 

[CX880]

So many flight schools will go out of business.

 

[COOPERVANE]

so many flight schools will go out of business.

good!

 

[cunchos]

on HR 3371 i did not read anything that asked for a ATP.... The only thing that came close to it was (Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on flight schools, flight education, and academic training requirements for pilot certification.)

 

[rumorhasit]

I believe it does say ATP required for pilots entering the airlines. Pay will not increase I don't believe tho....

 

[anewunion]

what does this mean for the co-pilots that have under the 1500 hr min., but already work for an airline. Do they get grand fathered in.

 

[andyd]

on HR 3371 i did not read anything that asked for a ATP.... The only thing that came close to it was (Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on flight schools, flight education, and academic training requirements for pilot certification.)

It very clearly states an atp required for all Flight Crewmembers with in 3 years of the legislation being inacted....it's in Section 10.

 

[NoJoy]

It will get interesting when alot of furloughed regional pilots who don't even have 1000hrs won't be back to their jobs for a couple of years. I don't think most of them will have ATP mins when they get called back. The smart ones will start teaching or get the CFIs to aquire said time. Some won't come back at all.

 

[ASA_Aviator]

good!

You don't get it. Airlines are going to go out of business if more people don't get into the industry...

 

[Erlanger]

More importantly, Capt. Lou Albano, my childhood hero died.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/14/obit.albano/index.html

 

[SLUF4]

More importantly, Capt. Lou Albano, my childhood hero died.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/14/obit.albano/index.html

dang; he was friends with cyndi lauper back in the day...i have a tape from 1985 of wrestlemania with them in it

 

[sweptback]

You don't get it. Airlines are going to go out of business if more people don't get into the industry...

The airlines didn't go out of business the last time there was a severe pilot shortage, they just started paying for pilots' training costs.

I think you'll see the same thing this time. Only difference will be that instead of a major airline taking a guy from zero hours to a commercial certificate and putting him in the FE seat of a 727, he will go to the right seat of a regional jet. Plus, I can imagine some pretty wicked training contracts.

I don't think the glory of being an airline pilot is completely gone, I just think the risk/reward curve is screwed up. If you took a lot of the financial risk out of the career path, I think you'd find there was no longer a shortage.

Then there's always Plan B: There is (rough guess) probably close to 10,000 regional pilots at all the regional airlines. That's quite a large pilot pool for the majors to choose from, and it will eliminate the pesky regional airline thing at the same time.

 

[ASA_Aviator]

The airlines didn't go out of business the last time there was a severe pilot shortage, they just started paying for pilots' training costs.

I think you'll see the same thing this time. Only difference will be that instead of a major airline taking a guy from zero hours to a commercial certificate and putting him in the FE seat of a 727, he will go to the right seat of a regional jet. Plus, I can imagine some pretty wicked training contracts.

I don't think the glory of being an airline pilot is completely gone, I just think the risk/reward curve is screwed up. If you took a lot of the financial risk out of the career path, I think you'd find there was no longer a shortage.

Then there's always Plan B: There is (rough guess) probably close to 10,000 regional pilots at all the regional airlines. That's quite a large pilot pool for the majors to choose from, and it will eliminate the pesky regional airline thing at the same time.

Maybe. We'll see what happens. Unintended consequences are likely. I do hope that it puts positive pressure on salaries, but that will mean positive pressure on ticket prices too.

I agree that there would not be a pilot shortage if there were not a financial risk. The problem will now be that the path from newbie to regional FO will be much longer, and there just aren't that many people in the pipeline right now. 3 years from now is going to be interesting at the regional level. Someone is going to go out of business due to lack of crews. It just takes too long to bring a zero time person up to speed, and there won't be enough people out there when the majors start retiring people.

Whatever. It is what it is.

 

[jmreii]

Maybe. We'll see what happens. Unintended consequences are likely. I do hope that it puts positive pressure on salaries, but that will mean positive pressure on ticket prices too.

I agree that there would not be a pilot shortage if there were not a financial risk. The problem will now be that the path from newbie to regional FO will be much longer, and there just aren't that many people in the pipeline right now. 3 years from now is going to be interesting at the regional level. Someone is going to go out of business due to lack of crews. It just takes too long to bring a zero time person up to speed, and there won't be enough people out there when the majors start retiring people.

Whatever. It is what it is.

I do not believe any airline will go out of business because of a shortage of flight crews, more likely it will be because of high ticket prices equals less demand which means I no longer need your product.

 

[PA44Jockey]

It will get interesting when alot of furloughed regional pilots who don't even have 1000hrs won't be back to their jobs for a couple of years. I don't think most of them will have ATP mins when they get called back. The smart ones will start teaching or get the CFIs to aquire said time. Some won't come back at all.

I bet airlines such as Comair are actually banking on this.

 

[JimmyKool]

I remember when you needed 2500-3000 hrs to be competitive for a commuter and there were no shortages then. Also, as long as republic is flying 190's for 170 pay rates. We have no chance for higher income.