Being a pilot is a good job, particularly if you get in at a cargo operation. Frankly we don t work

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After asking for a show of hands from air charter operators who are experiencing difficulties filling pilot vacancies, FAA deputy director airline low price ticket of flight standards John Duncan told attendees at this week's NATA Air Charter Summit that he gets involved in discussions about pilot shortages in a lot of different venues. "From an academic standpoint, it's going to be interesting," he said. "But from a community standpoint, airline low price ticket it's probably going to be a little painful. This is an interesting dilemma for the aviation community."
Although the airlines have always been able to attract people with experience that they needed, airline low price ticket there is a perception that the new flight, duty and rest rules will create a need for more pilots. A second dynamic is the new first-officer qualification rule requiring 1,500 hours total time, with which the smaller feeder organizations are already having problems.
So the airlines have to look to other places for pilots. How that will affect the Part 135 segment is intriguing, Duncan explained, because pilots moving to Part 121 are going to need 1,500 hours, "which puts [Part] 135 operations in a different place." He asked NATA attendees for their support for a " U.S. aviation academy" that is now under discussion. It would use four-year universities airline low price ticket to train pilots and mechanics and leverage financial backing so the costs of training would not be overwhelming.
Hit us like a freight train to hear about the immenent danger of loosing SCSU s aviation dept of the college. My son is in his 3rd year and BOOM,,,this horrible news. WHY would we be abolishing a course SO BADLY needed for America? People need a professional proficient and dependable airline low price ticket flight airline low price ticket crew to lead them to a a safe arrival (EVERYTIME). It s a horrible way to die, I v heard. Imagine the horror of going down because something went wrong in the cockpit airline low price ticket (employee fatigue or worse (short staffedness). The airlines should be of paramount importance to America and to be SURE, the airlines syhould have ADEQUATE,,if not ABOVE ADEQUATE AMOUNT OF STAFF TO PREORM FOR PUBLIC SAFETY S SAKE!! My son is eager and MORE THAN ready to fly/fix planes but NOW, may not ever get a chance to feel his dream.
On a trip 2 years ago in Alaska, i talked to a an Ex Air Force F-16 pilot on our fishing charter trip. He obviously had thousands of hours in f-16 s and had been hired as an MD 80 pilot for American Airlines. Well 2 yeasr ago he had been furloughed for over a year at that time, and that was before the recent Amerian Airlines Bankruptcy filing this year. he was not optimistic about getting called back anytime soon . I am sure its even worse now in the bankruptcy aftermath. If an Air force pilot with that many hours in jets is sitting around waiting for the phone to ring and get his job back, imagine how it is going to be for a new pilot dreaming about aan airline career to get a job.
I took an early out from a regional carrier. I have about 4500 hours flying CRJs. Not only is the pay low and duty hours high at these airlines, most guys come in with $120k of flight training debt... making $25k a year. It s a very cool job, if you don t factor in the company issues, union issues, bad pay, bad hotels, and not getting to see your family because you re on a 6 day trip as a reserve pilot.
Being a pilot is a good job, particularly if you get in at a cargo operation. airline low price ticket Frankly we don t work very hard and get paid very well...but being in a union has been a mixed bag. You get lots more than guys flying the line at UAL or DL, but when the gravy trane comes to a halt we all get off and start at the bottom senoritywise. oh well. it s still a good job, just don t expect to make more than your Dr buddy next door...there s pleny of ex pilots out there waiting to fly if they can hack the pay cut. unions have wrecked the industry and the profession IMO
Air charter operators are currently having difficulty finding pilots with the experience the need? They re kidding, right? What the air charter operators should have said was that they re having difficulty finding pilots with the experience then need AT THE PATHETICALLY LOW SALARIES THEY ARE OFFERING.
Do you think an engineering firm would have trouble finding experienced engineers if they only paid $20,000 or $30,000 per year? How about an accounting firm? Wanted: experienced, college educated accountants. Salary $22,000 per year. Apply at.......and there would be no need to read any further.
The problem that charter airline low price ticket airlines and regional airlines face is that they are outright spoiled. For the past 3 or 4 decades, there has literally been a huge oversupply airline low price ticket of pilots. These employers could pay extremely low salaries, treat their pilots poorly, and still find all the experienced applicants they needed. The gold at the end of the rainbow for these regional and charter airline pilots was a major airline job, with a pension, quality work rules, and high pay. So they d put up with the bull for a while, gain their experience for that future major airline job, and move on.
Well, the majority of those airline jobs went away a decade go. Pay was cut in half, pensions were stolen, and jobs were outsourced. So now young pilots are still faced with the same poor paying, poor quality regional airline and charter operator jobs with no incentive to take such bad jobs. The gold at the end of the rainbow, the carrot at the end of the stick, is no longer there. These poor regional airline and charter operators are going to have to accept the new reality they face.
There are 1000 s of furloughed airline pilots on the street, right now, who would like to be flying again. There are pilots in the military who certainly would like to get out and start flying again commercially. airline low price ticket There are 1000 s of pilots airline low price ticket on the sidelines airline low price ticket who have been unable to find jobs over the past 10 years, who would love to start flying again. My advice to those poor charter airline low price ticket operators and regional airlines is this: stop treating your pilots like crap, start paying these professionals a PROFESSIONAL salary, provide them with a GOOD QUALITY OF LIFE and they will come, just like they had in the previous decades. Until you change your ways, you are screwed. If you built your business model on paying your PROFESSIONAL pilots wages that would make a fast food manager blush, then your business model is going to have to change. If you can t afford to change, oh well. Capitalism is incredibly darwin-istic. Set the brakes on your airplanes and find a new business. Times have changed.
While I completely agree with everything you stated in your comment... I just finished college, got up to my CFI completed and switched what I want to do in life cause there would be no way I could find a flying job that would pay for my student loans... That being said, where do you suppose these airlines/charter companies are going to come up with the money to increase pilots pay?
You say increase ticket prices... That would be IMO the end of commercial aviation as we know it as more people would choose to drive over fly due to the cost differential. Most airlines are broke as it is, so as there may be a pilot shortage airline low price ticket in the industry and economics and (airline airline low price ticket recruiters) are telling pilots that salaries will be going up and now is a great time to be a pilot, Im just not seeing it. Any ideas?
I fly for a first class flight department that just recently had a opening. We received over 5800 resumes. There is not a shortage of highly qualified pilots seeking quality jobs. I personally know pilots that choose to collect unemployment rather than accept bottom feeder flying job. Unemployment paid better.
Costs of learning to fly are high. Salaries are very low. Despite what the media tells you only the very senior few percent make really good money and have a good quality of life. Those at the bottom can be gone from home 20 to 25 days a month and be making as little as $25k. Settled with debt and a family, this is not a very appealing job anymore. Even with experience (which cannot be taught at any flight school, only learned over time) such as two years instructing, a year flying freight , 10 years at a regional airline ,and three years at a major airline ;salaries are still low. Sixteen years of experience and about $60k/yr is what I have to show for it. Some pilots who have over 30 years experience are msking $85k at my sirline and have been working airline low price ticket without a raise for over ten years. Costs have gone up but not salaries. Airlines have to start treating pilots better to attract quality individuals to enter the piloting ranks.
I refuse to accept airline low price ticket there is ANY evidence of a pilot shortage in the air charter industry, when numerous job openings airline low price ticket for first officer positions demand that the applicant already hold the applicable type rating AND considerable experience in type. This is simply a case where operators are too cheap to pay for an individual s training, and