Originally Posted by Excargodog

If you look at it dispassionately, AA doesn’t WANT to flow people, because it is more costly to them than a military or OTS hire.

No major has a serious problem getting applicants. But in order to flow someone AA not only must train the person they pick up but backfill that person’s slot at the WO, which means recruiting and training costs for the replacement. If AA can instead pick up some competing regional guy, not only do they get the guy for nothing but the other guys regional will have to recruit and train the replacement.

It’s a two-fer, they save money by not having to replace the WO regional guy and cost the competition by making them find and train a replacement.

And retiring/separating military pilots? Millions of dollars of taxpayer funded training? People who have mostly NEVER been in a union? Many with a pension and healthcare benefits already? They can’t snap those up quick enough.

so yeah, it’s not - and never will be - about staffing the major. It’s about keeping the WO guys there long enough that they get senior enough that it’s easier to just not make the jump to the major where they’ll go back to being on reserve in the junior base and be furlough-bait for the next downturn.