The "Looming Pilot Shortage", (circa 1989)
 

This article, from the New York Times, is 25 years old.
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Pilots Scarce, Airlines See 30-Year-Olds as Captains
By CARL H. LAVIN
Published: January 11, 1989





Airline executives, concerned about an imminent world shortage of pilots, are taking steps that will place younger and less experienced fliers in command of airliners.
The shortage, most apparent in other countries, is still a few years away in the United States, aviation experts say. But it has already caused a flurry of hiring by American carriers unseen in recent years that points to the coming scarcity.
''Ten years from now every airline in the country will have 30-year-old captains,'' said Capt. Vern Laursen, vice president for crew training at Trans World Airlines. Causes of the Threat
The reasons for the threat of a scarcity are numerous: the boom in the civil aviation industry; a soaring retirement rate among an aging corps of pilots, whom the Government requires to leave the job at 60; a decline in the number of new students taking up flying, partly a result of costs of basic training that have risen with liability insurance rates, and a lack of growth in the airlines' customary supply of aviators from the military, which has raised pay in an effort to remain more competitive with the carriers.

As a result of all these factors, the pool of experienced American fliers is drying up,......blah, blah, blah.
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They used pretty much the same excuses that you'll hear today, i.e. retirements, training costs, dwindling military supply, etc.

You can read the entire article here: http://www.nytimes.com/1989/01/11/us/pilots-scarce-airlines-see-30-year-olds-as-captains.html?src=pm&pagewanted=1

Oh great, another "visionary." How many times does this have to be reposted? Let me guess, you also just discovered Gangnam Style.

Hate much, Breezy?

Perhaps we should all get your ok before posting anything. We wouldn't want to bore people with things that you already know, now would we.

Sounds like an alright plan to me.

Did you have your fiber today?

I don't believe in fiber. Fried chicken and white bread for me.

Vern Laursen is now deceased

Did he live to see how dumb he looked with his quote?

Good dude I'm sure, but STILL a dumb quote.