Will future demand increase for more commercial airplanes.. ...Increasing demand for Commercial Pilots causes concern for U.S. Airforce.
Lt. Gen. Chris Nowland, the Air Force deputy chief of staff for operations, plans and requirements says, “We focus on fighter pilots, but it’s not just [them]. We have a national pilot crisis…
There’s a lot of infrastructure associated with it and the problem becomes complicated as you consider how to man to the increased capacity that we want to build.”
Much of the problem with finding Air Force pilots stems from competition in other sectors.
The pipeline of Air Force pilots going into the commercial ranks continues to exist each year. As the previous generation of pilots start to retire, the airlines are looking at hiring anywhere from 15,000-20,000 new pilots.
The Air Force, which currently has around 13,000 veteran pilots will provide a harvesting ground for these positions. Additionally, maintainers and drone pilots are being sought by these carriers. Where does that leave the military?
The Air Force simply can’t match the salaries, benefits and job security offered by commercial carriers.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen.Mark Walsh laments, “You’re going to find that military pilots will be a focal point of this recruiting. Every time the airlines have recruited heavily in the past, we’ve lost more people… They’ve been deploying, and deploying, and deploying. After a while your family gets a little tired of that.”
A recent study projects major airlines will hire an average of 2,000 pilots per year over the next decade, including upward of 5,000 per year beginning in 2022.
By the end of an Air Force pilot’s service requirement, they will likely have met the 1,500 hour requirement for landing a co-pilot job.
Now let’s look at the pay comparison between Air Force and private sector pilot jobs.
In order to compete with the glamour of the airline industry, the Air Force has had to increase its retention bonuses. Annual installments are now between $10,000 and $25,000 for anywhere from five to nine years of work. Multiple this out and you’re looking at between $50,000 and $225,000 total.
To sweeten the pot, the Air Force is offering Aviator Retention Pay to drone pilots for the first time in addition to fighter jet pilots.
While all this is nice, there’s something else the Air Force offers that simply can’t be rivaled by a commercial airline. Adrenaline.
Some really cool pictures of the F-22 Raptor
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