United Doubles Down on Pilot Hiring, Sets New Record

Amid a recent flurry of headlines around slowdowns in hiring among some airlines, United is keeping its foot on the gas.

Ryan Ewing

Monday, November 20, 2023 at 03:19 PM ET

Verified

A United 777-200 in San Francisco [Photo: AirlineGeeks/Ben Suskind]

Key Takeaways:

United Airlines is aggressively hiring pilots, setting a record in October 2023 with 270 new hires, and is on track to exceed its annual target of 2,300 pilots for the year.
This strong hiring trend by United contrasts with a general slowdown in pilot recruitment among other major U.S. airlines, some of which have halted hiring or advised pilots to seek jobs elsewhere.
United supports its hiring efforts through investments in its Aviate Academy and an expanded training center, even offering new hires attractive first officer positions on widebody aircraft.
Despite success in recruiting first officers, the broader airline industry, including United, faces an emerging "captain shortage" which could impact future capacity, a challenge recognized by United's CEO.

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Amid a recent flurry of headlines around slowdowns in hiring among some airlines, United is keeping its foot on the gas. The Chicago-based carrier just hired a record number of pilots in October.

According to data from FAPA – a pilot career advisory group that’s been tracking hiring trends across 13 major U.S. airlines for over 30 years – United hired 270 pilots in October 2023, the carrier’s highest amount of new hires in a single month. This boils down to nearly 70 new hires each week.