Airline Pilot Shortage?

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Wednesday, April 19, 2023 at 12:03 PM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The path to becoming an airline pilot has seen changes, including reduced training costs due to waived college education requirements and improved compensation/flow-throughs, despite ongoing challenges in labor relations.
While the career has its difficulties, experienced aviators overwhelmingly view being an airline pilot as "the best job on the planet," offering high pay, professional camaraderie, and a fulfilling "way of life."
Practical aspects of general aviation, such as understanding airport fees, amenities, and varied self-serve fueling systems, are often overlooked in primary flight training, leaving solo pilots to learn these essential details on their own.

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Thanks for your editorial, “Airline Pilot Shortage?” in the February 2023 issue. As a career aviator with over 50 years in the “Wild Blue,” both a corporate and airline kinda guy, I have some insight I’d like to share.

You are right that the road up to the Bigs through the commuters is or was long and often cumbersome, and really didn’t pay so well. But the commuters are giving Covid raises now, along with signing bonuses and sometimes a guaranteed flow-through to the Bigs.