- US airlines are once again facing a shortage of pilots as travel demand soars.
- Republic Airways, the regional carrier, is considering reducing training requirements from 1,500 to 750 hours.
- Senator Lindsey Graham may propose a bill that would increase the mandatory retirement age for pilots from 65 to 67.
As the pilot shortage continues to confront the airline industry, airlines are struggling to meet their flight schedules, and some are even trying to reduce the training hours required to get more pilots in the air.
On May 13, Ben Minicucci, CEO of Alaska Airlines, apologized in a Youtube video To cancel the continuous flights that plagued the carrier. Minicucci blamed the shortage of pilots, saying “we had 63 fewer pilots than we planned when we built our schedule,” causing a “multiplier effect.”
“By the time we discovered this bug, our pilots and flight attendants were bidding on April and May schedules, making it impossible to sufficiently adjust schedules to avoid cancellations,” he continued.
The Seattle-based carrier is just one example of airlines struggling to find enough pilots to handle the surge in crowded travel after the pandemic. According to BloombergDelta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines They have all cut regional flights in recent months due to shortages, with United establish 100 regional aircraft on this issue.
“The shortage of pilots in the industry is real, and most airlines simply won’t be able to meet their capacity plans because there simply aren’t enough pilots, at least not for the next five years or more,” United CEO Scott Kirby said in a quarterly earnings call. annual in April, per CNBC.
Because of the pilot shortage, airlines are considering changing long-term requirements to get more pilots sooner, such as eliminating class requirements, eliminating the mandatory number of flying hours needed for hiring, and increasing the retirement age for pilots.
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