Originally Posted by
Carebear
So here’s the question. With the 600 number posted in here earlier this year, you figure for hiring goals you have about 12 pilots per airframe. If you accelerate the loss of 10 airplanes (120 pilots + about 70 for instructors, fleet captains, chief pilots) from next year to this year, doesn’t that number get absorbed into the hiring goals for the 737 fleet projection? If you announce 600 pilots needed for the 737s, and now you dump a full fleet of 321s, you now have an extra 190 pilots not needed for hiring, because they get absorbed into your 737 fleet.
Now, instead of needing to hire 600 pilots, you need 410. 200 already hired means you need to hire 210 more pilots, or 43 a month. Is that number not attainable?
Which is why I believe they changed the projection to around ~400 this year, and planning 600+ for next year. I’d have to go back and look when, but pretty sure the company did down the hiring from 600 to ~ 400 this year due to the Airbus drawdowns.