Originally Posted by
Wingnutt
Interesting thread, I do know that some carriers require their pilots to be US Passport Holders to participate in CRAF (Civil Reserve Air Fleet). In my experience this has been a Department of Defense rule and not air carrier specific, and only when in time of war. CAL does participate in CRAF. I am not familiar with a requirement for the USPS and that being said, UPS and FEDEX both require that the pilots they hire have not lived outside of the US for a specific amount of time for that very reason.
Regarding foreign pilots applying for positions at US carriers. America is a great nation that has trained pilots privately, professionally and militarily since I can remember. My first training base in the Air Force was at a NATO training location in North Central Texas, and the State I currently reside in is inundated with flight training schools with students from all over the globe, so I believe I can speak with some validity on this subject. Why do you think people from all over the world come to America for flight training? I think it is wonderful that people recognize that America is a wonderful place to take advantage of a democracy that allows such privileges and freedoms unlike that anywhere else in the world to come train. Good for us, good for them.
My position on hiring non citizen pilots in the US is that it is just another back door outsourcing of jobs in the U.S. This is in by no means an isolationist or discriminatory position, just fact. We have thousands of furloughed pilots in the US who are citizens with some jumping back into active duty military service to feed and medically cover their families (what about those who do not have that option), not to mention our guys and gals in the Armed Services who will be looking for jobs and lets not forget our folks at the regional & supplemental operations who are paying their dues to hopefully move on to a legacy carrier as great of an operation as CAL.
Come visit, vacation, train, whatever, but if you want to participate in employment in America and all of the other wonderful things that you can accomplish here...I welcome your application for citizenship.