Unfortunately the world has changed a lot since the days of metros and jetstreams more than just the advancement of automation. Opportunities for young pilots have changed dramatically. The days of flying checks are drying up with advancements in banking computer technology, gas and insurance are making flying lessons cost-prohibitive for all but the professionally minded aviators (especially when discretionary income quickly becoming a fond memory for the middle and upper-middle class), and if you can find a multi-engine airplane somewhere, chances are pretty good you can’t rent it.
Thankfully for those who came of age between a year and three years ago, those who graduated from respected aviation programs and had a bit of instructing under their belts at the afore mentioned institutions were marketable to regional airlines. Sadly, this has led to some expectations from this year’s graduates. The airline jobs are all but gone and now the traditional gigs to build time before 121 have dried up too. I have friends who have taken up multiple flight instructing jobs and can still barely scrape a few dozen hours a month (and a few dozen hours of pay a month) because the students aren’t there like they were years ago.
The world had changed indeed and once the current group of unemployed pilots finds their respective “dream jobs,” the line of 500-1000hr wiz kids is going to come back. Sadly this means that anyone sitting in the left seat of an RJ might want to dust off their CFI’n skills because their already underpaid job description just got another responsibility added to it. I don’t agree with it but its quickly become reality. All of this being said, the young pilots out there might want to start realizing that they have had a bit of an easy road when compared to the guy in the other seat. Iron your shirt, comb (don’t spike) your hair, wear your hat if you have to, wear your blazer, keep the Ipod in the roll-aboard, leave the backpack in your dorm room for the next guy, and when the captain is right, eat your humble pie.