US: Airlines face more competition for crews as Air Force plans to recall pilots
The Air Force plan announced Friday to recall 1,000 pilots from retirement could hurt smaller airlines in the competition to hire trained crews to fly their planes. "We anticipate that the Secretary of Defense will delegate the authority to the Secretary of the Air Force to recall up to 1,000 retired pilots for up to 3 years," the Pentagon said. Airlines have warned for years about a looming pilot shortage, with the threat that smaller communities could lose regular airline service. But the debate is contentious because pilot unions contend that if regional airlines offered better pay, more candidates would embark on the costly training to join the industry. "I think that it makes sense from the Air Force perspective to look at retired pilots for the needs of the military," said John Cox, a former airline pilot who is now a consultant as president of Safety Operating Systems. "There is a pilot shortage, so it's going to have some effect," Cox added. "But the major airlines are still filling their classes. It's the regionals that are struggling a little bit, and some of the business aviation slots are proving difficult to fill." Boeing projected in July that airlines will need 637,000 new pilots over the next 20 years, including 117,000 in North America, for the anticipated growth in passengers.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2017-10-23/general/us-airlines-face-more-competition-for-crews-as-air-force-plans-to-recall-pilots
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US: Airlines face more competition for crews as Air Force plans to recall pilots
The Air Force plan announced Friday to recall 1,000 pilots from retirement could hurt smaller airlines in the competition to hire trained crews to fly their planes. "We anticipate that the Secretary of Defense will delegate the authority to the Secretary of the Air Force to recall up to 1,000 retired pilots for up to 3 years," the Pentagon said. Airlines have warned for years about a looming pilot shortage, with the threat that smaller communities could lose regular airline service. But the debate is contentious because pilot unions contend that if regional airlines offered better pay, more candidates would embark on the costly training to join the industry. "I think that it makes sense from the Air Force perspective to look at retired pilots for the needs of the military," said John Cox, a former airline pilot who is now a consultant as president of Safety Operating Systems. "There is a pilot shortage, so it's going to have some effect," Cox added. "But the major airlines are still filling their classes. It's the regionals that are struggling a little bit, and some of the business aviation slots are proving difficult to fill." Boeing projected in July that airlines will need 637,000 new pilots over the next 20 years, including 117,000 in North America, for the anticipated growth in passengers.<br/>
