Sunday newspaper, Parade magazine page 7

[HU-16]

I was just reading the paper and opened up the little Parade magazine thing. A little snipet says "Pilots Needed: In the next decade 40,000 pilots will turn 60 and face mandatory retirement." Then it goes on saying how even more pilots will leave the airlines to become personal pilots for the wealthy. Anyhow it turns out to be an ad for the Be A Pilot program. I used to believe this pilot shortage thing when I first got interested in flying, but I don't buy it anymore. How can they get away with saying this?

 

[bobbysamd]

Pilot "shortage" . . . or . . .

Kit Darby is alive and living and spreading his sophistries.

That is rich. That's exactly the propaganda FAPA espoused in 1987. Same 40K pilots needed. Same time period, ten years, during which there will be retirements.

They get away with it because, thank G-d, we have our First Amendment right of free speech. Tell the furloughees there is a pilot shortage. Tell the folks who are recent flight training grads there is a pilot shortage.

I found this website for Be A Pilot:

http://www.beapilot.com/careers.html . Take a look at the organization from which it gets its data, AIR, Inc. Surprise, surprise, that is Kit's new gig. Check it out:

http://www.jet-jobs.com/ABOUT AIR INC/aboutairinc.html

You will get Kit's complete history on that page.

Once again, from someone who has been there and was a FAPA devotee in the early nineties, for once and for all, there is no pilot shortage!!

However, that doesn't mean that you shouldn't try for the career. You will face an uphill battle. You can succeed, but, please, please realize that you will face stiff competition.

 

[jaybird]

My dad told me about the article. I asked him if Kit Darby was the author, of course he was clueless. Both my parents then questioned me about going to AirNet and said I should just go for an airline job. Wil Smith said it best "Parents Just Don't Understand."

 

[Flip]

Yep. I saw that Ad also. Made me laugh. Instead of Pilots Wanted, it should have said, B]Pilots Jobs Wanted[/B]!!!

 

[kilomike]

Parade Magazine and Be-A-Pilot.com

Folks:

I saw the ad also. I wrote a letter to the editor and enclosed a copy of an article from the latest Avion paper. It shows that 30% of ERAU's instructors are going to be laid off. Some shortage!

In case anyone else wants to write to the editor of Parade Magazine, here is the information below:

Mr. Lee Kravitz, Editor
Parade Magazine
711 Third Avenue
NY, NY 10017

If enough people write perhaps it will help nip this in the bud. I looked on the Be A Pilot website and did not find an address. I'll be calling the number to find out the address so I can write to its director. As soon as I find out, I will gladly post the information to you so that we can do a letter writing campaign to stop the spread of such lies.

There is no need for these kinds of myths to be spread around.

It would have been entirely different if Be A Pilot was discussing the utility and pleasure of using personal aircraft. I would endorse wholeheartedly an ad campaign that did not discuss flying careers, but did promote personal flying for business or pleasure. That after all is the grassroots of aviation and should be encouraged. I will definitely be in touch to encourage them to change the direction of their focus away from careers and towards flying as a personal activity.

Thank you, and fly safe!

kilomike

 

[AmericansUnited]

Sorry I missed the article. I wish I had a better answer for pilot shortages. I can tell you that American is calling back 208 of our furloughed pilots effective May 1st. I've also heard that this may be the only recalls for the remainder of 2002. Immediately following 9/11, management was saying that it could be 2 years before American begins hiring again. Things change day by day and lets hope there is a shortage of pilots in the future and everyone moves up to where they want to be.

 

[AmericansUnited]

Also, sorry to hear about the ERAU layoffs.

 

[bobbysamd]

Pilot "shortage"

Absolutely we should hope that everyone will be recalled and there will be new classes for new hires. But, face it. There is no pilot shortage. Kit Darby and his lackeys can manipulate statistics any way they want, but the reality is that H.R. at all companies, airline, frax, schools, wherever, are bulging with dozens of resumes from qualified pilots.

For example, let's say an airline hires 500 pilots in year. Sounds like a lot of hiring, right? It is - until you consider that it could have two thousand applications on file, once again, from applicants that meet the airline's quals. Any one of which would be a good hire. Is that a pilot shortage? I . . . don't . . . . think . . . so.

You CAN be hired, but consider the odds. Best of luck to all job-seekers.

 

[Tim47SIP]

AU
Dont forget that the only reason those 208 guys are being recalled was due to a court action following a grievance by APA. It is very possible that 208 TWA folks may be on the street in the future. By no means was the recall due to better economic times at AA.