Originally Posted by
Aviatrx
I'm not sure if it is true, but I have heard as many as 500 pilots are enrolled in the pipeline program. I am not sure how many of those are there for Envoy. I still believe AAG will have to make it more lucrative to attract the numbers of pilots we will need. They may be able to pull out of the new hire problem just fine. Time will tell
Even if Envoy did have 500, they all wont be available in the time frame Envoy would need them to maintain present size. Considering what else is out there (virtually nothing), they'd need the entire pipeline within the next 18 months and that assumes EVERYONE in that pipeline is coming to Envoy which doesn't sound realistic. Additionally, pipeline pilots are usually bound to academic schedules and must complete college educational requirements too, so they are only spit out into the airlines in periodic spurts like when semesters end.
I'm skeptical this source of pilots will be anything more then a fraction of those needed by ALL regionals going forward and airlines will need more while this source stays stable, at best.