ALPA opposes two proposals to alleviate pilot shortage
US pilot union Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) has pledged to block any attempt to raise the mandated pilot retirement age, which advocates say would help alleviate the pilot shortage. ALPA is also vociferously opposed to reducing minimum aeronautical experience requirements for pilots entering the field, claiming doing so would erode safety. Even though numerous US airlines have cancelled thousands of flights this year due to a dearth of qualified flight deck staff, ALPA contends there is no pilot shortage to alleviate. “This discussion is yet another attempt to distract the conversation from the real issue, which is the failure of airlines to deliver on a key goal of the multibillion-dollar relief plan Congress provided them during the pandemic,” Joe DePete, ALPA president, says on 19 May. That goal, says DePete, was “to effectively manage air-service operations as travel resumes”. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham is reportedly working on finding consensus for legislation that would raise the mandatory pilot retirement age from 65. “ALPA strongly opposes this proposed legislation as there is no reason to change the retirement age today, and doing so would only increase costs for airlines as well as introduce unnecessary risks to passengers and crew alike,” he adds. Increasing the required retirement age to 67 or 68 would have “significant unintended consequences”, and displace pilots, ALPA says. The union adds that older pilots will be forced to leave “the most desirable international routes” because the international age limit set by civil aviation regulatory body ICAO is also 65. “When age-65+ airline pilots return to domestic-only flying, they will then displace more junior pilots and both cohorts may require training on different aircraft, adding to the training costs of air carriers,” ALPA says.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2022-05-20/general/alpa-opposes-two-proposals-to-alleviate-pilot-shortage
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ALPA opposes two proposals to alleviate pilot shortage
US pilot union Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) has pledged to block any attempt to raise the mandated pilot retirement age, which advocates say would help alleviate the pilot shortage. ALPA is also vociferously opposed to reducing minimum aeronautical experience requirements for pilots entering the field, claiming doing so would erode safety. Even though numerous US airlines have cancelled thousands of flights this year due to a dearth of qualified flight deck staff, ALPA contends there is no pilot shortage to alleviate. “This discussion is yet another attempt to distract the conversation from the real issue, which is the failure of airlines to deliver on a key goal of the multibillion-dollar relief plan Congress provided them during the pandemic,” Joe DePete, ALPA president, says on 19 May. That goal, says DePete, was “to effectively manage air-service operations as travel resumes”. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham is reportedly working on finding consensus for legislation that would raise the mandatory pilot retirement age from 65. “ALPA strongly opposes this proposed legislation as there is no reason to change the retirement age today, and doing so would only increase costs for airlines as well as introduce unnecessary risks to passengers and crew alike,” he adds. Increasing the required retirement age to 67 or 68 would have “significant unintended consequences”, and displace pilots, ALPA says. The union adds that older pilots will be forced to leave “the most desirable international routes” because the international age limit set by civil aviation regulatory body ICAO is also 65. “When age-65+ airline pilots return to domestic-only flying, they will then displace more junior pilots and both cohorts may require training on different aircraft, adding to the training costs of air carriers,” ALPA says.<br/>
