The National Air Carrier Association recently premiered its new animated explainer video about pilot shortage at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Aerospace Summit in Washington, DC.
Check out the video below.
Source: National Air Carrier Association
As special interests in Washington continue their campaign of misinformation about pilot supply, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released its latest pilot-production data showing that the United States is outperforming last year’s record-breaking year with 10,091 new airline pilots certificated in the past 12 months. More than 1,200 new pilots were produced in August alone of this year, the largest monthly number ever. Overall, there are 6,500 more pilots today compared to before the pandemic according to data from the Department of Transportation and airline filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
“This data-centered reality check comes at a critical time for anyone who cares about the safety of our skies because Congress is poised to introduce more risk into America’s aviation system, the safest in the world,” said Capt. Jason Ambrosi, ALPA president. “The special interests pushing these changes hang their hat on the false premise that America isn’t producing enough pilots to meet demand, but the FAA’s data proves their claim is flat-out wrong. In fact, the United States is shattering records when it comes to pilot production,” continued Ambrosi.
Currently, some special interests are lobbying Congress to make changes to U.S. aviation safety laws, including weakening rigorous pilot-training requirements and arbitrarily raising the mandatory retirement age without first studying the safety implications of such a move. Since passage of the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010, which established the global aviation gold standard for safety, the United States has seen a 99.8 percent reduction in airline passenger fatalities.
“Pilot production is up, the passenger fatality rate is down, and our skies are the safest in the world The current production of pilots is outpacing U.S. airline hiring needs, so there’s no need to change a law that has been proven to save lives,” added Ambrosi.
Founded in 1931, ALPA is the largest airline pilot union in the world and represents more than 75,000 pilots at 43 U.S. and Canadian airlines.
Source: ALPA
Photo Credit: ALPA
Aerviva, a Dubai, United Arab Emirates based international aviation recruitment consultancy, published an article entitled “New Trend Signals to Potential Challenge – Airline Captain Shortage” highlighting the emerging captain shortage in the airline industry.
Check it out below.
The role of an airline captain has long been esteemed and sought after. However, a recent trend highlighted by the American Airlines pilots’ union reveals a surprising statistic: over 7,000 pilots at American Airlines have opted out of pursuing captain positions, while United struggled to fill 50% of the 978 captain vacancies in the past year. This prompts the question: what factors have led to this shift?
Possible loss of seniority and unsatisfactory work-life balance
According to Jainita Hogervorst, Director of Aerviva Aviation Consultancy, a Dubai-based international consultancy, specialising in aviation recruitment and document management, there are many reasons reducing the allure of becoming a head of flight crew. “While becoming a captain entices with attractive compensation possibilities as well as a prestigious title, it also involves a change in seniority dynamics, specifically the transition from senior first officers to junior captains. Junior captains are faced with amplified uncertainties in their flight schedules, on-call commitments, and sudden assignments, translating to reduced stability.”
Furthermore, United pilots have disclosed that many senior first officers opt to forego promotions to junior captain positions, fearing the loss of seniority and subsequent disruption to their personal lives. Work regulations can compel pilots to accept assignments during their days off, with flight plans subject to arbitrary changes or extensions. Seniority has traditionally afforded pilots a measure of schedule predictability, facilitating trip selection, trading, and vacation planning. However, adjustments in job roles, airline bases, or aircraft types can influence seniority rankings.
“Such uncertainty in scheduling might trickle down to other issues, such as unsatisfactory work-life balance,” Hogervorst explains. “The evolving work-life balance landscape and societal attitudes towards career encourage a shift in working people’s attitude, pilots included. According to Statista, 72% of individuals surveyed consider work-life balance a pivotal factor in job selection, underscoring its growing significance.”
What does it mean to airlines?
The International Air Transport Association’s most recent data reveals an increase in air traffic, with May 2023 witnessing a 39.1% increase in revenue passenger kilometres compared to the previous year. Globally, traffic has surged to 96.1% of the pre-pandemic levels of May 2019.
“Such rapid recovery is met with one of the most pressing challenges of the aviation industry — pilot shortage,” says Hogervorst. “Projections from the International Civil Aviation Organization suggest a need for over 350,000 pilots by 2026 to sustain operations and the scarcity of captains further exacerbates the challenge. Some regional carriers have already curtailed flight schedules by up to 20% due to pilot staffing constraints, highlighting the critical role captains play. This intensifies pressure on existing captains and diminishes the allure of the position.”
A possibility for aspiring driven pilots
While unfortunate, this global situation opens new doors to aspiring young pilots aiming for captaincy. Reports from Aero Crew News reveal a new trend: pilots with as little as 4.5 months of seniority bid to become captains on aircraft such as Delta’s Boeing 757 or Boeing 767, marking a departure from industry norms.
Bringing captaincy back to the top
The potential for reinvigorating the captain role lies in shifting the focus towards work-life balance. “The decreasing dominance of pay as the sole motivator presents an opportunity to enhance the position’s allure. Recently, while renegotiating their contract, the pilot union at United has outlined 79 quality-of-life enhancements, including measures to prevent pilots from being compelled to accept assignments on their days off and introducing incentives and improved scheduling systems for last-minute engagements,” she says.
“By focusing more on improving captains’ work-life balance and mental health, airlines can not only reinvigorate the captain role but also fortify its appeal to the pilots of today and tomorrow,” believes Jainita Hogervorst, Director of Aerviva Aviation Consultancy.
Source: Aerviva
In a new milestone for the European aviation sector, Pilot Flight Academy (PFA), based in Torp-Sandefjord, Norway has announced a formal agreement with Icelandair. The agreement commits the academy to training pilots for the esteemed airline.
This program, meticulously crafted over an 18-month period, will offer cadets world-class educational journey. The initial phase of the training will take place in Norway, after which the cadets will proceed to PFA’s training base in Denton, Texas, for five months of flight training. The last, more advanced, training is performed at Torp, Norway. Upon completing their training with PFA, the cadets will undergo three months of specific aircraft training on Boeing 737 or Airbus 320 with Icelandair. Thus, 21 months from the commencement of their training, the cadets will be operational pilots for the airline.
Bogi Nils Bogason, CEO of Icelandair, commented on the agreement, saying, “We are delighted to enter into this agreement with Pilot Flight Academy. As an island nation, Iceland depends on air transport. It is therefore very important to offer high quality education in the specialized jobs performed in aviation. Although there is still great demand for jobs with Icelandair, it is very important to support the continued growth of the company and our team for the future.”
Forecasts by aircraft manufacturer Boeing suggest that the aviation industry will need 739,000 new pilots by 2039, significantly more than the current rate of training. Thereof, Europe alone is projected to need about 6000 pilots annually.
One of the primary challenges is attracting enough young talent to the industry, believes Mikael Eriksson, CEO at PFA. He mentions that the flight school recently launched a scholarship program, awarding two scholarships worth over one million kroner, to candidates who can be strong ambassadors for the pilot profession. However, if the future need for pilot is to be properly addressed, airlines must also play their part, he believes.”
The responsibility to train enough pilots rests with the entire industry. The competition for talent is intense, and students expect high quality, job security, and favorable conditions. This initiative from Icelandair is an excellent example of how airlines can secure critical resources and contribute to addressing the global pilot crisis,” states Eriksson.
The first batch of cadets is slated to be enrolled in PFA’s pilot program this coming November.
Source: Pilot Flight Academy
Photo Credit: Pilot Flight Academy
JettWings Airways is thrilled to announce the ‘Jettwings Serbia – Cadet Pilot Program’, an exclusive flight training pact between Jettwings Airways and Aviation Academy of Serbia for training of Jettwings pilots in association with VR Global Ltd., having a 99-year-old global legacy of pilot & aviation personnel training.
The pact was signed by between Mr. Sanjay Aditya Singh, MD & CEO, JettWings Airways; Mr. Rajat Ahuja, Director, VR Global Ltd.; and Dr. Goran Cvijovic, CEO, Aviation Academy of Serbia in the august presence of His Excellency, Siniša Pavić., Ambassador of The Republic of Serbia in India at the Serbian High Commission in New Delhi.
“We are excited to launch our Cadet Pilot Program in association with the Serbian Government, a testament to our unwavering dedication to aviation excellence,” said Sanjay Aditya Singh, CEO and MD of JettWings Airways.
“We are thrilled to announce the ‘JettWings Serbia – Cadet Pilot Program’, an exclusive flight training pact signed between JettWings Airways, VR Global Ltd and Aviation Academy of Serbia. We will proudly train JettWings Airways pilots,” said Siniša Pavić, Serbian Ambassador to India.
After India’s G20 presidency marks a significant milestone in its global leadership role, this is an unprecedented feat for an airlines from Northeast India to mark Northeast in the global map of aviation companies.
With this pact, JettWingsAirways plans to create its own ecosystem of pilots of aviation personnel to meet the long-term expansion plan of the airlines. The first batch of pilots begin training from 15th November 2023.
The Aviation Academy of Serbia is established by the Ministry of Education, Science & Technological Development of Serbia in which the state of Serbia is investing 65 million Euros.
AFM team note – JettWings Airways is said to start operations later in 2023 with a fleet of leased Embraer 175.
Source: JettWings Airways
Photo Credit: JettWings Airways
