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American Airlines Expands Talent Pipeline With Over 2,000 Pilots Hired in 2023 and New Initiatives To Support Aspiring Aviators and Maintenance Professionals

AAL | October 8, 2024

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / October 8, 2024 / American Airlines

Originally published in American Airlines' 2023 Sustainability Report

Recruitment

Recruiting the best talent for all roles across American is critical to our ongoing success. Two areas of particular focus are pilots and aviation maintenance professionals. We have made significant progress, but replenishing their ranks requires a long-term outlook.

Developing a pipeline for pilots and aviation maintenance professionals

American hired more than 2,000 pilots in 2023 and expects to add a substantial number in 2024. To sustain a strong pipeline of qualified candidates, we have been working to create awareness of, access to, and opportunities for careers in aviation for those who otherwise might not know it is possible. The American Airlines Cadet Academy helps us achieve our recruitment goals. Cadets from multiple ethnic, geographic and economic backgrounds come together at the Cadet Academy, which strives to address financial obstacles by providing flight training students with affordable financing opportunities and a predictable path to completion.

Cadet Academy students are expected to take approximately three years to complete the program and become airline-ready professional pilots. They are then guaranteed placement at one of American's regional carriers: Envoy Air, PSA Airlines or Piedmont Airlines. Accumulation of flight hours leads in due course to a conditional job offer with that regional carrier. Over 950 cadets have entered the Cadet Academy since its launch in 2018, and more than 110 now fly for one of our regional carriers. Since American has contractual flow-through agreements with each of our regional carriers, pilots who are hired by one of them have the opportunity to be hired by American as a mainline pilot.

In 2023, the Cadet Academy expanded its training footprint by adding Luke Weathers Jr. Flight Academy in Olive Branch, Mississippi, which is run by the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals (OBAP), as well as Infinity Flight Group in Trenton, New Jersey. This brings the total number of program locations to seven, including CAE in Phoenix, Coast Flight Training in San Diego, Dallas and San Marcos, Texas, as well as Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Every Cadet Academy student is also matched with an American Airlines pilot mentor to provide comprehensive guidance throughout their educational journey.

For team members who aspire to become pilots, the Elise Eberwein American Airlines Pilot Scholarship will award two $50,000 scholarships annually over the next 10 years to candidates who are currently working at American and have demonstrated financial need. Honoring our former People and Global Engagement leader who retired in 2022 following 35 years of service, this eponymous $1 million initiative embodies our commitment to nurturing diversity, opportunity and talent. The first two scholarship recipients were named in 2024.

We are also working to build a pipeline of aviation maintenance professionals, who play a critical role in American's safety efforts and operational reliability. We currently employ more than 12,000 of these team members across our hubs and other locations. Our partnership with the Aviation Institute of Maintenance (AIM) is a key part of our strategy for connecting with qualified candidates.

As part of our relationship, American guarantees interviews for top candidates from AIM's Chicago campus, provides students with opportunities to engage with our aircraft maintenance teams and offers eligible students financial assistance for certification exams. These well-paying jobs offer opportunities for advancement, and they do not require a postsecondary degree.

Another part of our strategy includes regular participation in recruiting events. They are sponsored by industry organizations such as the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, National Society of Black Engineers, Sisters of the Skies, (WAI), NGPA, Latino Pilots Association, Professional Asian Pilots Association and OBAP. For example, at the latest WAI Conference in March 2024, we extended 16 job offers to talented female pilots along with 10 scholarships to students pursuing careers in aviation.

New Agreements Underscore Our Commitment to Labor Relations

Approximately 87% of American's workforce is covered by collective bargaining agreements, and our commitment to respecting labor relations was reflected in new agreements signed recently with two of our largest labor unions. In August 2023, American's 15,000 pilots represented by the Allied Pilots Association ratified a four-year agreement that delivers more than $9 billion in compensation and quality-of-life benefits.

This was followed in January 2024 by a five-year agreement with the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which together represent the company's nearly 15,000 customer service team members across airports, premium guest services and reservations. Our new contract includes significant improvements in compensation, benefits and quality-of-life provisions.

American has long respected freedom of association and our team members' right to join, or not join, third-party organizations such as labor unions or other lawful organizations of their own selection, and we do not interfere with these organizations.

Creating Aviation Opportunities for Women

Captain Deborah Hecker's 30-year career in commercial aviation has taken her from piloting the Douglas DC-3 and Embraer 110 to a three-year stint at Piedmont Airlines before joining American in 1999. Along the way, she has won numerous awards and broken her share of professional barriers for women. Currently, she is responsible for the Flight Operations Manual, better known as the rulebook for pilots, in her role as American's Director of Flight Operations Training Policies and Procedures.

As she traversed her path from aspiring lawyer to Airbus A321 captain, Hecker embraced opportunities to mentor other pilots, both at American and in her more than two decades of volunteer work as a member of Women in Aviation International (WAI). In 2024, she is stepping down from WAI's board of directors. She has held this post since 2017, the last two years as its chair.

"WAI is one of the many great organizations that are trying to move the dial to get more women into aviation careers," says Captain Hecker, who was hired by American after receiving a WAI scholarship. "It encourages women to look at a variety of career options, not just flying. That could include maintenance, dispatch, engineering and aircraft design, to name just a few areas. Many are jobs that don't necessarily require a four-year degree."

Captain Hecker herself has played a variety of roles at American, including working on the pilot recruitment team and as a Customer Experience project manager. She also takes great pride in the Keep Flying Scholarship she launched with Captain Evelyne Tinkl - a close friend who flies the Boeing 757/767 for United Airlines - in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Since its inception, this scholarship has provided approximately $150,000 to help fund flight training for women.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Aviation Professionals

At American, we believe it's never too early to begin laying the foundation for a career in aviation. That led us to team up with the nonprofit CR Smith Museum and launch the Aviation Career Pathways program in October 2023. This multiyear initiative is providing seventh to 12th grade students in the Dallas Independent School District with access to aviation science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education along with a better understanding of aviation industry career opportunities.

Increasing exposure to aviation STEM careers and skills comes with challenges, especially when working with underserved communities. Most of the students participating in Aviation Career Pathways attend Title 1 schools, which include a significant percentage of students from low-income families. The CR Smith Museum, located on American's campus in Fort Worth, has studied these challenges extensively and prioritized solutions in its education program. Among them, students should benefit from the program's combination of touch points. Aviation Career Pathway includes in-classroom programming, participation in the museum's annual Aviation Career Day, behind-the-scenes access to American's operations and the opportunity to interact with team members.

Beginning with the 2024-25 school year, this program will expand to include the Fort Worth Independent School District as well.