More Pilots Like This on the Horizon

Retired W4

Retired W4

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And you thought all you had to worry about are delays and cancelations. Think again. The pilot shortage has moved the FAA and ICAO to consider lowering long standing experience requirements for the cockpit. Can you say woke, DEI? Even with pay raises it will be years before this mess is fixed and I'm afraid it will only get worse before it gets better.

ITA A330 Keeps Going After Clipping Air France 777 - AVweb

Some airline are considering removing 40% of the seats in regional jets and calling them charters so the First Officer (co-pilot) will only need 500 hours of flight time instead if 1500. Fact checking of FAR's and proposals is welcome, as I do not have the FARs in front of me and I've been retired from aviation for some time.

Have a nice flight.
 
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If there is a pilot shortage, why don't they simply raise the mandatory retirement age upwards from 65 years old then? That's right folks, your commercial pilots can't even work until they are 100% vested in social security any more since they adjusted retirement age upwards on the sliding scale they have implemented at present.
 
My son is a check airmen for an airline. It's less likely that he signs off on a captain upgrade or FO initial. Very low skill levels and judgement observed. 20 something female new hire FO couldn't use the pedals due to her 3 inch heels. Also, being 3,000 too high and 40 kts fast on final didn't register in her brain.
 
SLOW to relay the warning ... in addition to Pilot Error

From the OP link

The Air France crew definitely felt the collision and got on the radio to ATC. "There was an Alitalia (the ITA plane was still in its old livery) passing behind us that hit our aircraft," an Air France pilot said. "It's so you can tell them not to take off."
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There was apparently some confusion in the cab and by the time controllers got hold of the ITA crew they were already climbing out.
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gjgalligan said:
They lost a ton of pilots & air traffic control due to the vaccine mandate. Maybe they should revisit that plan and scrap it.
Click to expand...

A side issue to this. Yesterday the US Fifth Circuit Court agreed to an en bank review of the lawsuit over the administration mandate that all federal civil service employees be vaccinated. Meanwhile, the existing stay against enforcement of the mandate remains in effect. There is now a very good chance that the stay will become permanent within several months and the vaccine mandate will no longer be in effect. It seems likely that if the administration looses the case, it will not go to the US Supreme Court.
 
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muddocktor said:
If there is a pilot shortage, why don't they simply raise the mandatory retirement age upwards from 65 years old then? That's right folks, your commercial pilots can't even work until they are 100% vested in social security any more since they adjusted retirement age upwards on the sliding scale they have implemented at present.
Click to expand...




The vaccine mandate is why there is a pilot shortage. They simply left for greener pastures that didn't require it or retired.


This is a self induced problem.
 
I used to do firearms qualification for Federal Flight Deck Officers (armed airline pilots). Many of them thought they were the last generation of actual pilots and that they were going the way of elevator operators.

The planes can fly themselves now.
 
eb07 said:
The vaccine mandate is why there is a pilot shortage. They simply left for greener pastures that didn't require it or retired.


This is a self induced problem.
Click to expand...

That's only a part of it. The pandemic itself had a lot to do with it. Senior pilots being furloughed due to flight cancellations, who were within a couple of years of retirement anyway, were taking early outs, creating a smaller pool of available qualified pilots when flights started increasing again. Those who have aged out in the last couple of years haven't been replaced, also because of the pandemic and suspended hiring during it. Then there's the resistance to vaccination, which is something I cannot get my head around, for ANYBODY, much less pilots and other airline workers. There is also resistance from the unions to lowering the 1500 hour minimum, and oddly enough to raising the mandatory retirement age.

It's been a perfect storm the last couple of years, many different and unrelated factors converging to permanently change how we live day-to-day. Government has no idea how to handle it in a sensible, non-political way, everybody's an "expert", so who do you listen to?

My son-in-law is in the midst of this, and if the industry doesn't collapse altogether, he may come out way ahead. He's a CFII right now, with around 600 PIC flight hours, looking to fly commercially once he reaches the minimum FAA required hours. He's leaning towards cargo, he can get in quicker and there seem to be quite a few benefits over passenger flying.
 
I was forced out at age 65. My health was good and I had no problems with the FAA medical exam. But they did think I was going to drop dead with Alzheimer on the day after my birthday. I think that if a pilot still has his skills and health, than he should continue on. I turn 80 in a couple of months and I have slowed down but I see where the age 65 rule is BS. I loved my job and miss the flying but I did know when it was time to quit.
 
Many other nations have much lower standards for pilots than the US. The better training is why US based pilots can fly out of problems that cause foreign, especially Third World planes to crash.

A big part of the shortage here seems to be related to layoffs and firings related to pilots not wanting to take the COVID vaccine.
 
I have a friend who made capt around 24-25 yrs old. He's 55 now and very much an old man already. The odds of a heart attack,stroke,aneurysm,etc rise dramaticallly after 55 and still go undetected.I wouldn't raise the retirement age just yet
 
muddocktor said:
If there is a pilot shortage, why don't they simply raise the mandatory retirement age upwards from 65 years old then? That's right folks, your commercial pilots can't even work until they are 100% vested in social security any more since they adjusted retirement age upwards on the sliding scale they have implemented at present.
Click to expand...
I have a couple of buddies that are just now retired Captains from Delta and trust me, the SSI isn't a concern to them? lol
 
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