Originally Posted by
Flying Ninja
My understanding is that pay and benefits are negotiated by the pilot union. I also understand that the top pilots will not give the new pilots a pay hike to the tune of double or triple current rates.
Thus, how do you propose management to improve this career?
Seems to me the PILOTS are the one killing their own young and blaming it on management. I could be wrong. But I have yet to hear talks from senior pilots giving up money for the new people (which I KNOW will NEVER happen).
There is one constant in this universe that typically rings true in a situation like this and that is supply and demand. Right now, if none of the variables are to change from their current state, things will get very interesting.
The airlines are just at the very leading edge of a shortage of willing or able pilots, just imagine how things might look in about 6 years when it is predicted we will be at the peak of the problem.
This bears repeating- there is nobody in the pipeline and that's where the real issue is.
In six years the regional airlines might not even exist. They only exist today so major airlines can farm out some work to B scale employees (you). Once there is no financial benefit for doing that, those airplanes and routes will be reabsorbed.
So are pilots killing their own profession? Well they sure aren't helping it. But if senior regional pilots want to keep on flying, they are going to need more junior pilots to sit next to them in that other seat.