Pilot Career Initiative

Dissent to NADA/F Dissent of September 6, 2010
September 11, 2010

Pilot Career Initiative (PCI) is an Ad Hoc group of aviation professionals formed in October 2009. PCI is comprised of representatives of higher education, airline executives as well as training experts, aviation academy representatives, and other dedicated aviation professionals. Because of this diversity, PCI is able to draw on the training as well as safety resources and expertise of airlines, universities, academies and manufacturers. The group was formed due to there mutual concerns for the image of the career of a professional pilot and lack of educational funding. At the time the group was forming, H.R. 3379 was being pushed through congress by what appeared to special interest groups and non‐aviation groups responding to sensational journalistic reporting in the wake of CO3407 and other regional aircraft accidents prior to that. While well intended, PCI believed H.R.3379, as written, would fall short of the objectives of congress.

Following are PCI’s dissents of NADA/F’s specific statements:

There is an issue of a corporate culture, and its detrimental effect to the aviation industry when the traveling public learns of $17,000 to $19,000 pay per year for Part 121 FO’s, and learns that they did not have sufficient training or experience in icing or other bad weather situations.
The American People and Traveling Public want experienced pilots in the cockpit, and we believe that higher pay will attract more experienced pilots.
The Part 121 carriers could provide the needed flight hours to gain that 1,500 flight hours of experience, and they could raise their starting pay to $40,000, or better yet, $60,000+ a year. They would have their choice of thousands of experienced and trained pilots with thousands of hours, who are retired military, and/or formerly with larger airlines, overseas experience, or a combination of flight hours and training.
No one has discussed the psychological factors that could impact someone’s performance on the job, when a young pilot is burdened with low pay, student loans, fatigue, and pressure to possibly work two or more jobs. Many young pilots from the 4-year academic programs have student loans, and a $100,000 student loan is about $1,000 a month for 30 years to pay back. Young pilots take the $19,000 a year pilot job and may work second jobs just to pay their student loan and rent/food. This pathetic pay puts FO new hire pilots in a terrible personal situation, which is not conducive for the focus and energy needed to be a commercial airline pilot.
FOQ ARC Report September 28, 2010 66
5.0 Minority Opinions
FOQ ARC Report September 28, 2010 67
Experienced pilots cannot afford to work for $19,000 and probably know it is not safe to be a commercial airline pilot while forced to work two or more jobs.”

PCI: PCI finds this statement subjective, out of scope, and unbalanced. PCI agrees that as agreed between senior pilots and the company, the junior F/O pay is unattractive. PCI strongly believes the discussion, while important, has no place in the scope of the FOQ ARC and would prefer not to see a seat on the ARC to be used to further an agenda not specifically within the boundaries of the scope of the ARC.
Respectfully Submitted: John A. O’Brien PCI [email protected]

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I like the part where they complain about sensationalized journalistic reporting yet here we are today, 4-years-later, and they are enjoying all the reporting about a pilot shortage. There is no pilot shortage, as was noted above in the report these airline executives responded to. There is simply a shortage of pilots willing to work under the salary and conditions that exist in the regional airline business today. There is nothing new that wasn't predicted 4-years-ago. Nothing.