Originally Posted by
Piklepausepull
The 15,000 pilot number is not meant as a joke and has been stated by the managers at the training center---which, by it's very nature, makes it suspect as a "training center rumor."
That said, UAL plans to hire 1000 more pilots than needed for straight retirements in the next 18 months. Maintain that tempo for just a little while and UAL is suddenly at 15,000. Working strictly from the publicly announced fleet plan the "airline" (UA + UAX) is not growing dramatically but mainline is adding airframes while UAX is parking aircraft. There is definitely a shift in flying in progress while the "end state" plan admittedly remains cloaked in secrecy.