Lot's of interesting views here. Thanks. I don't see lot's of foreign pilots flocking to the US to fly for the regionals. Most developing countries (China, India etc) need all the new pilots they can get. Most experienced pilots anywhere in the world make more than they would as an F/O in the US.

The way I see it: The regionals will have to increase pay significantly, but the positive effects won't be immediate and therefore the airlines may have to start being inventive when it comes to filling those gaps. I agree with those who have said that foreign pilots won't be the solution to the looming regional pilot shortage but they might be a mitigating factor.

Personally, I would like to do it for the (life) experience, but not at current first year F/O pay. I would prefer working for a good fractional or corporate operator but I think those are far from facing a pilot shortage. In any event it would be like a sabbatical for me and it would mean a pay cut. But life is not all about the money.

It's true that a regional airline sponsored work visa might not fit in with the current visa structure because H-1B visas require at least a bachelor degree as far as I can tell.

One poster commented on the better pay and training in the US vs. the EU but I am not sure he was comparing apples and apples. Airlines such as BA and Lufthansa have excellent training and most Legacies still have very good pay.

Sure, there are some low cost, regional and air taxi operators that offer neither decent pay nor quality training. NetJets in Europe for example is similar in pay and training to NetJets US. Lufthansa CityLine is probably the best-paying regional in the world.