I remember well the recession of 1991-1992. The effects of it lingered long after in aviation. I was in my mid-20's and freshly laid off from my flight instructing job in Anchorage. Even before things got bad it was still difficult to move up to the regionals or what then was called "commuter airlines".

I took a sweeping tour of the west and southwest. Searching every city I came to for a flying job. Every few days I would reach a new city and virtually wall paper every airport with my resume'. It took a lot to walk into a strange FBO in a sport coat with a single piece of paper in hand. From a mile off the receptionist knew what I was after and would try not to make eye contact. The awkward moment would eventually arrive when I would ask if they were hiring and would be greeted with a quick and sharp "no". I would still find a way to leave my resume' before moving on to the next company in line.

It seems crazy now but back then it was common for companies to sell jobs. I stopped in at King Aire Lines of Henderson Nevada on my grand tour. They told me that they were in fact hiring pilots and that Cessna 207 jobs only cost $5000 and the 402 was $15,500. If I had the money I probably would have done it. Some Flight Instructing FBO's in big cities were asking $5000 to work as a basic instructor and more if you wanted instrument and multi-engine privileges. There were a few companies back east that sold metroliner training for $17,000. After completing the program they promised an interview and the possibility of a job with almost never happened. Mesa Airlines sold very expensive ATP training and would occasionally offer a job interview if you did well enough. When hiring did resume in the late 1990's competitive minimums at the regionals were around 4000 hours plus 500 to 1000 hours of single pilot multi-engine IFR.

It took a long time before things began to change. Event then it wasn't all that different. It might seem like those were the dark ages when compared to the last few years in aviation. However the last few years were unique and probably will be remembered as the golden era of regional aviation hiring. The high minimums of the past are due to return. Pay for play jobs also might make a comeback. My point is that pilots who are preparing to enter the job market today should be braced for some extended hard times and a future that dose not resemble expectations that were forged over the last few years.

SkyHigh