I continue to read about the changes that may or may not be coming to the aviation industry. I hear calls from experts, non-experts, politicians, the media and passengers for a higher standard. The notion of safety cannot be ignored and is paramount in all of our everyday lives, this is understandable for the career that we chose. And I recognize there is a problem, but what is the solution?

I say this because a majority of the solutions being provided deal with first hiring, and then training. But, by making pilot records more accessible, lengthening the period of a background check from 5-10 years, increasing the aviation/nonaviation pre-hiring academic requirments, increasing experience minimums, and increasing regulation etc., have we found the answer? In essence, make the job harder to get and more stressfull once hired. Logically this would raise the standard of pilot. But at the same time, if the wage stays the same, or heaven forbid, drops... where are we now? You want to increase hiring requirements and increase regulation, while paying the low wages we have today? This, I hope, we can all agree is not the answer! These two ideas must slide together, an increase in one should create an increase in the other.

I recently was talking with a senior mainline Captain. His comment was, "it takes someone special to become a pilot, not everyone can do this job well. But the people that can, are smart enough to choose another career." I completely agree. Just some food for thought.

 

I don't think anyone here wants the wages to stay low. I believe that raising the requirements will lead to better pay. The way that the requirements are set up currently pretty much leads to anybody with access to $100,000 being able to become an airline pilot. It takes a few months and you have every thing that the FAA requires to sit in the right seat. This has led to a huge supply of pilots willing and eager to get into a jet.

The thought is that by raising the requirements (harder tests, ATP required even for the right seat, etc...), the supply will drop. Companies will then be forced to compensate better in order to attract people. With the increased compensation will come more qualified individuals and the cycle continues.

I am not completely convinced that it will work, but it is definitely better than what we have currently. This race to the bottom is forcing the best among us to give up this profession. It has been a sad decade for aviation.

 

The company doesn't set the rates, the pilots set their own rates. Even if it took 10,000 hours and a Phd to get hired at a regional, doesn't mean senior pilots are willing to give up their pay for junior new hires. Management will lower the standards to put bodies in the seats, when there aren't enough bodies willing to work at those rates, the planes will be parked. Wages will never go up in this industry unless the PILOTS do something about it, that is the inconvenient truth of this business.

 

Hey Srfnfly, I get it. I should have been more clear. I agree that the solutions we both listed may in fact create the outcome we all want. I was merely trying to make the point that one can't change without the other. An increase in compensation and QOL would have to parallel the increase in requirements and regulation. Having said that, and having seen management at work, I am not confident the two groups share the same belief.

 

We all know what it will take to hire and retain talent, but the airlines are still in cheap labor mode. Until this changes, nothing else will.
As to other occupations, the grass may not be greener on the other side. Sometimes the best bet is to stick with the first plan and ride out the hard times.

 

The airplanes won't be parked. If no bodies are to be had, the wages will go up. The profit margins will shrink, but its still the most profitable way to go. The management/owners are all about maximizing profit. Parking an airplane potentially eliminates profit. Paying more to staff an airplane will still allow operations to continue, but at a reduced profit level.

But, pilots will show up regardless of the compensation. Quality of pilot might suffer, but someone will be there to take the job and they'll get it if the price and ROI is right.