U.S. Airlines And A Shortage Of Pilots
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-11-15/us-airlines-and-shortage-pilots
It was nearly four years ago that Colgan Air flight 3407 from New Jersey crashed on its way to Buffalo, N.Y. All 49 passengers and crew were killed. Accident investigators blamed pilot error, and calls mounted for stricter oversight of regional airlines. As a result, new regulations for pilots are set to take effect beginning next summer. No one is against enhancing air travel safety, but some aviation experts are concerned the rules are too strict and could contribute to a severe pilot shortage. Pilots unions argue the situation is not that dire. Diane and her guests discuss new rules for pilots and the implications for airlines and travelers.
Guests
Andy Pasztor
senior special writer for The Wall Street Journal, specializing in aviation and space.
Captain Lee Moak
president of the Air Line Pilots Association, International.
Roger Cohen
president, Regional Airline Association.
Comments
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Diane and I both had the same barkin' mad response to Moak. He was unbearable: smarmy, plummy, unctuous. My head was spinning; he constantly derailed the conversation. The other guests seemed to be nonplussed by his blather.
My guess is that we will be waiting a long time for the good captain to make a repeat appearance.
My guess is that I will never get another chance to use "nonplussed". Ah, well.....
@mchaun
1) I didn't ask you.
Sure you did.
2) Tom didn't specify any time period.
Correct. Only you did that.
indefinite: (adj) without fixed or specified limit; unlimited
Its obvious that your vocabulary is limited ... and yes, actually, philosophy was one of my undergrad majors which included extensive training in logic, rhetoric, and theology and I have the sheepskin and the transcript to prove it. The problem mchaun is, you just don't recognize them when you see them.
3) When Tom expresses an opinion about Airline safety, that is a Monolog. When eggie, unbidden, expresses his contrary opinion about Airline safety, it becomes a dialog
Correct
whether Tom wants it or not.
Incorrect. Tom is never bound to respond.
@ ecgberht
" A bullet from KC to Chicago might make economic sense as another poster pointed out. But I don't see a NY to LA route"
I can see your point. I agree that selecting high speed rail travel from NY to LA over air travel would make no sense for a business person.
It would be interesting to see, however, how many metropolitan statistical areas sit on a route from New York to LA, making it possible to use rail travel from Chicago to Des Moines, for instance, and then Des Moines to another city on the route.... Obviously, I do not know what would be the route from NY to LA.
I was a regional airline pilot for ten years; I flew the CRJ-200 / -700. When I started flight training in 1998 there was talk of a so-called "pilot shortage". What B.S. There never was, and never will be a pilot shortage; it's a bunch of crap drummed up by the airline lobbyists to weaken more stringent requirements for a pilot to step into the cockpit of a regional airliner. 1500 hours is a reasonable bench mark. As a check airman for one of the regionals I flew for, we were hiring pilots with 350 hours and no experience flying in snow. Yikes! I recommend watching the Frontline episode "Flying Cheap"; that will pretty much give you all you need to know about why there might be a pilot shortage: Crappy wages and work rules. Government overreach? Whatever. This new legislation helps address some of the work rule crap that I had to fly with.
These so called aviation experts are likely hired by people so that small feeder airlines can continue to pay fast food wages to pilots initially hired. People that feel comfortable with pilots with only 250 hours of experience really like to roll the dice. That is only about 3 months total aviation experience flying. It's pretty much a one man show at that point with the captain in the left seat often giving a lot of instruction. Just hope the captain doesn't make a mistake because there is a very good chance the first officer is not going to catch it. Whatever the future brings we aren't there yet in aviation and having someone reasonably qualified is very important for safety.
If there ever is a pilot shortage, it will be because the job longterm is not worth pursuing anymore and not because of asking pilots to gain some minimal experience elsewhere before carrying passengers on airlines. Increasing the standards for experience to something reasonable isn't going to affect any potential shortage one way or another in my opinion.
The talent in any society follows the money. I am referring to mainline carriers, United, Delta, American, and not regional carriers. The pilot compensation at the mainline carriers has really lagged the cost of living. I know join the club.
My point is that talented individuals have observed this and are bypassing aviation for other careers that do pay more. You are going to have to go to school longer get a Master degree in Engineering. Statistics, Nursing, maybe Law School with an MBA. All of these jobs will pay more than a mid career mainline pilot currently make.
If the large airlines want to avoid a pilot shortage in the future they will have to compete in the minds of the younger talent pool when they are making career decisions. In other words, in the minds of University Juniors and Seniors.
The pipeline to train an airline pilot is about five years.
I would suggest they have already lost the battle in the hearts and minds of young people that do not see a future in aviation. I expect there will be a shortage of trained pilots in about five years, due to the increasingly attractive pay and benefits in other professions for educated and talented young people. The airlines will clamor for government help for low cost loans for those that want to be pilots and to reduce pilot experience requirements. You get what you are willing to pay for.
The FAA are trying to mandate at least a commercial certificate to operate the uav's. again another training bubble
One of the reasons pilots are moving overseas is because over there experience counts. For example if I lose my job as a captain at an airline, I have to start all over at bottom level pay at my new company. If the only airlines that are hiring are regional airlines, that pay may be less than $20,000 to start all over again. However if I go overseas I will be compensated for my experience. I can go to Asia and make close to a quarter of a million dollars annually. With expat tax exemptions I can keep almost all of it. If you were an experienced pilot faced with the choice of starting over again at $20,000 per year or $250,000 per year, what job are you going to take? Personally, I am packing my bags and heading overseas.