(qualified?) pilot shortage round 2? MPL

[HA25]

Praying for GROWTH at SWA! And, if not, hoping that the upcoming hiring cleans out the ranks of people who want to go overseas and really puts a crimp on the Regionals who have gotten away with slave labor wages for decades now. Would be nice to see this career become something great again!

This! ^^

If there is such a thing as justice.

 

[HA25]

It is sad that supply and demand will raise wages before ALPA.

don't blame ALPA as much as the RLA and the general level of anti-union laws in the US.

 

[ualdriver]

I agree very much with Lear's post a few above this one. I have never been too concerned about MPL because all it will do is shift new pilots to another form of expensive flight training that the current wage structure simply can't support at the regional level. If a pilot shortage materializes, wages HAVE to go up and/or the regionals are going to have to go through very expensive measures like paying for new pilot training, guaranteed loans (risky for the regional), guaranteed paths to major airline jobs, or similar non-traditional routes. Or they can choose to park their jets.

Another wrinkle that I wonder might develop (conjecture on my part).......what happens if big, desireable, global airlines like Emirates start losing experienced US pilots as they head home to their home countries? What if they open new pilot domiciles in the US like in Chicago or New York or LA? Are we going to see experienced US pilots leave major airline jobs for greener pastures at a growing airline and possibly a quicker upgrade? Maybe experienced US pilots will have the opportunity for better jobs with generous commuting contracts and/or an Air China A340 domicile in their home city.

It could start to be interesting times for airline pilots. Or......we could fall off the fiscal cliff, Iran could mine the Straits of Hormuz, Europe could fall into economic collapse, or the war in Syria spreads tipping us into another recession and the airlines get yet another reprieve. I wish I could predict the future

 

[Dan Roman]

don't blame ALPA as much as the RLA and the general level of anti-union laws in the US.

Exactly. People blame ALPA when it's just the vehicle for individual pilot groups to use. It's up to them how they use it. But there is just so much they can do for the reasons stated above. It's not like they have some magic wand they keep hidden away.

 

[Dumb Pilot]

Ex-pat compensation come up as the pool of U.S. aviators dries up for them to hire straight into the CA seat for widebody aircraft.

We are starting to see that, contracts have gone from 160K to over 200K within the last five years in some markets, business class commute is now offered by several commuting contracts and not just by a couple as it used to be when I jumped into the expat market, airlines are targeting specific expat pilots by offering rosters that will start and end in OZ, the US. You are seeing now companies changing their T&C's very rapidly to get people in the door, an example would be JetStar Japan that changed their T&C'S recently with an increase in pay and the option to commute which they didn't have before, all of this within the space of a year. The expat market is not for everyone and I wouldn't recomend it for guys who still have a long productive period left on their careers or for guys for which their better half is not also exited and looking forward to living abroad or 100% supportive of having all your days of duty and days off in a row, they have to be on board if the commuting lifestyle is going to work. But for those whom the expat pilot job market ticks the right boxes, there will be some interesting options coming up in the future

 

[jmreii]

I am completely familiar with ANA's flight training school in CA. The biggest difference with the Japanese culture and other cultures outside of the USA is the willingness of corporations to train employees from scratch over the long haul. I have had many clients and friends from overseas point this particular flaw of US businesses out to me many times. Train now, better have the knowledge for short-term rewards as oppose to training a person for the future in long-term benefits. When you start to fall behind losing becomes second nature.

 

[igneousy2]

When you start to fall behind losing becomes second nature.

Are you trying to say that Japan is losing because they are wasting their time training employees since they usually just take their training to a competitor, or are you saying that the US is losing because of companies unwillingness to train people that are only going to take their skills to a competitor?