Comments on: Pilot Shortage at Northwest is Tip of the Iceberg http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/ Aviation buzz and bold opinion Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:02:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: Eric http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10907 Eric Wed, 22 Aug 2007 02:57:25 +0000 http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10907 My latest AOPA mag says that the airlines will be hiring 12000 pilots this year and that the industry will be hugely hungry for pilots thru 2012. This is in the US and in Europe. The middle east airlines like Etihad are growing like crazy...so fast that they are raiding the EU for pilots. Belgium even wants laws to prevent that. Good times if you are a young person who wants an aviation career. Bad news for the military who wants 12 year commits to fly jets. The days of military to commercial conversion are getting more and more limited. Eric My latest AOPA mag says that the airlines will be hiring 12000 pilots this year and that the industry will be hugely hungry for pilots thru 2012. This is in the US and in Europe. The middle east airlines like Etihad are growing like crazy…so fast that they are raiding the EU for pilots. Belgium even wants laws to prevent that.

Good times if you are a young person who wants an aviation career. Bad news for the military who wants 12 year commits to fly jets. The days of military to commercial conversion are getting more and more limited.

Eric

]]> By: Scott http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10600 Scott Fri, 17 Aug 2007 03:53:44 +0000 http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10600 Rob's quote - I’m worried about the qualifications of some of the people we might be hiring into the right seat. You have good reason to be worried. FO's with 300 hours and Captain upgrades occurring at 2000 hours flying regional jets in all sorts of weather. Yikes! Starting pay in the neighborhood of $19000 at a regional airline. Ouch! I value my abilities and experience a LOT more than that. Many airliners, particularly at the majors, are not as well equipped as a new C172 or Cirrus. Why do we still see (hear on the radio) these guys needing vectors because they're not GPS or RNAV equipped. Pathetic! And finally, the airlines claim it's GA that is causing their delays and getting priority handling. I suggest the airlines take a look at their own scheduling practices. It's akin to cramming 10 pounds of crud into a 5 pound sack. And one just needs to go into any hub airport to see who gets priority handing. The next time a corporate jet gets priority handing over an airliner will be the first. Rob’s quote - I’m worried about the qualifications of some of the people we might be hiring into the right seat.

You have good reason to be worried. FO’s with 300 hours and Captain upgrades occurring at 2000 hours flying regional jets in all sorts of weather. Yikes!

Starting pay in the neighborhood of $19000 at a regional airline. Ouch! I value my abilities and experience a LOT more than that.

Many airliners, particularly at the majors, are not as well equipped as a new C172 or Cirrus. Why do we still see (hear on the radio) these guys needing vectors because they’re not GPS or RNAV equipped. Pathetic!

And finally, the airlines claim it’s GA that is causing their delays and getting priority handling. I suggest the airlines take a look at their own scheduling practices. It’s akin to cramming 10 pounds of crud into a 5 pound sack. And one just needs to go into any hub airport to see who gets priority handing. The next time a corporate jet gets priority handing over an airliner will be the first.

]]> By: GeraldZ http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10222 GeraldZ Fri, 10 Aug 2007 12:22:35 +0000 http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-10222 Mesa will experience the worst attrition because they are a miserable employer. They don't honor their contract and they treat their employees like dirt. They've always had a bad reputation and now that the tide has turned, it's payback time! JO is getting what he deserves. Note that American Airlines also will enter negotiations with the Allied Pilots Association next year. This should be a real dogfight since the pilots took 1/3 pay cuts and for two years now management has handsomely rewarded themselves with hefty bonuses. Makes me want to throw up. Strike! Mesa will experience the worst attrition because they are a miserable employer. They don’t honor their contract and they treat their employees like dirt. They’ve always had a bad reputation and now that the tide has turned, it’s payback time! JO is getting what he deserves.

Note that American Airlines also will enter negotiations with the Allied Pilots Association next year. This should be a real dogfight since the pilots took 1/3 pay cuts and for two years now management has handsomely rewarded themselves with hefty bonuses. Makes me want to throw up. Strike!

]]> By: Robert Mark http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-9952 Robert Mark Mon, 06 Aug 2007 11:44:54 +0000 http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-9952 Good points here Bill. The airline model the way we grew up with it is broken. The regionals are simply leading the charge this time I think. My question is what is regional airline management working with the majors going to do to fix the problem. My guess is they'll keep patching things. The regionals will eventually find people to fly. The question is how qualified are these folks? When there is an accident in which crew qualifications appear as a probable cause, all hell will break lose. Even on the GA side, we don't pay flight instructors anything either. No wonder they don't want to stay. But everyone can be a major airline pilot, at least not all at the same time. Good points here Bill.

The airline model the way we grew up with it is broken. The regionals are simply leading the charge this time I think.

My question is what is regional airline management working with the majors going to do to fix the problem. My guess is they’ll keep patching things.

The regionals will eventually find people to fly. The question is how qualified are these folks? When there is an accident in which crew qualifications appear as a probable cause, all hell will break lose.

Even on the GA side, we don’t pay flight instructors anything either. No wonder they don’t want to stay.

But everyone can be a major airline pilot, at least not all at the same time.

]]> By: Bill http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-9939 Bill Mon, 06 Aug 2007 05:56:00 +0000 http://www.jetwhine.com/2007/08/pilot-shortage-problem-at-nwa-is-tip-of-the-iceberg/#comment-9939 Your statement that NWA Management "seems to have just re-learned" implies that learning took place. I think the proper phrase is that "Managment seems to have had this lesson shown to them again." Whether they have learned from it this time remains to be seen. History tells us that they probably have not. They have surely failed to learn the lesson of actions speaking louder than words, when the words deny greedy behavior and the actions prove it. Speaking of greedy behaviou, just the other day the bankruptcy lawyers for NWA have "ammended" their bills upward to the tune of over 3 million dollars because the bankruptcy came out so well, and they want their cut. I have little doubt that NWA management will be tripping over themselves to pay it. Had the bankruptcy not gone well, Hell would freeze over before those same lawyers would think to reduce their fees, and to Hell is where those lawyers should be told to go. ---- Next subject: "Some questions we need to seriously explore are why can’t regionals find enough pilots? " Surely you jest. Let's see. Perhaps awful pay, crappy working conditions, and tyranical managment might be a few of the mysterious factors involved. Your statement that NWA Management “seems to have just re-learned” implies that learning took place.
I think the proper phrase is that “Managment seems to have had this lesson shown to them again.” Whether they have learned from it this time remains to be seen. History tells us that they probably have not.
They have surely failed to learn the lesson of actions speaking louder than words, when the words deny greedy behavior and the actions prove it.
Speaking of greedy behaviou, just the other day the bankruptcy lawyers for NWA have “ammended” their bills upward to the tune of over 3 million dollars because the bankruptcy came out so well, and they want their cut. I have little doubt that NWA management will be tripping over themselves to pay it. Had the bankruptcy not gone well, Hell would freeze over before those same lawyers would think to reduce their fees, and to Hell is where those lawyers should be told to go.

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Next subject:
“Some questions we need to seriously explore are why can’t regionals find enough pilots? ”
Surely you jest.
Let’s see. Perhaps awful pay, crappy working conditions, and tyranical managment might be a few of the mysterious factors involved.

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