With relatively short upgrade times at legacy airlines, what is the real answer to this question?


Helane Becker -- Analyst

Thanks operator. Hi, team. Thank you very much for the time of course. Two questions. One on -- as you think about the growth in the fleet, so if you I guess I think 10 crews per -- 5 crews per aircraft, 10 pilots per plan. And I'm wondering if you're thinking about, as you hire these 1,000 more pilots plus whatever you need to hire for reserves, how do you compete with the other airlines that are in the process of replacing retired pilots who have a higher starting pay. I mean -- are you -- and your contract doesn't come up until 2023. So how are you contemplating attracting people to your brand?

Scott M. Haralson -- Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Yes, it's a really good new story, Helane. The reason that Spirit is one of the most attractive places to work is that because of our growth, our pilots achieve seniority and therefore move themselves up into the captaincy faster than any other airline. And they do it by a factor of 2x or 3x faster than they will anywhere else, even when taking into account the retirement schedules. So what we love to see when we -- and you mentioned some numbers there that we're hiring a good deal of pilots, and we see them every time they come into the office. We bring them in here, and we get to meet with them, and they are thrilled to hear about the company's growth opportunities because they want to be here and be part of it, and they want to further their career. So that's our single-best asset when we're attracting pilot talent.