Airlines hiring buses to transport passengers between airports during pilot shortage

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At work I know a woman that her husband was a pilot at American Airlines. He took the early retirement package that was offered during the 2020 shutdown.

When American Airlines retired a bunch of aircraft…. the first thing that popped into my head was how long will it take to retrain all these affected 757, 767 and MD-___ pilots into new aircraft ?
 
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Yeah, it's their own fault. I had the opportunity to speak with a senior Captain at Continental in 2010 before the merger with United. He said if they started hiring at maximum capacity right then, they were already behind. Then they (all the airlines) delayed and delayed, failing to ramp up their hiring.

Add to that their antiquated hiring policies and there are thousands of safe, qualified pilots out there that simply haven't "played the game the right way" so never got a call to interview. I know at least one with a digital logbook that was passed over at the interview and didn't get the job because he didn't have the old school paper logbook.

Then there's the more-than-qualified pilots that have had their applications in for 5 years or more and never got a call.

🤷‍♂️
 
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I know one airline paying first officers (co-pilots) 300% pay for overtime on some weekends because they’re so short staffed. Good time to be a pilot….

The industry is cyclical though. The same pilots could have easily been laid-off 24 months ago. Could be laid off 24 months from now. You never know.
 
I saw a billboard from a community college advertising their pilot program.
 
Covid hurt the airlines, no question about it. But now it appears they hurt themselves worse by the way they handled the whole mess. Jet Blue cancelled 25% of its flights this past week. Another 20% experienced delays lasting several hours. Alaska Airlines, same deal.

It's always easier for companies to shutdown, and furlough, (basically fire) employees, than it is to start back up and get going again. A lot of these carriers will never fully recover. It's hard enough for an airline to make money when things are going good.

https://thepointsguy.com/news/jetblue-other-airlines-cancel-flights/
 
billt460 said:
Covid hurt the airlines, no question about it. But now it appears they hurt themselves worse by the way they handled the whole mess. Jet Blue cancelled 25% of its flights this past week. Another 20% experienced delays lasting several hours. Alaska Airlines, same deal.

It's always easier for companies to shutdown, and furlough, (basically fire) employees, than it is to start back up and get going again. A lot of these carriers will never fully recover. It's hard enough for an airline to make money when things are going good.

https://thepointsguy.com/news/jetblue-other-airlines-cancel-flights/
Click to expand...


Alaska Air has a different reason for their cancellations.
 
billt460 said:
Covid hurt the airlines, no question about it. But now it appears they hurt themselves worse by the way they handled the whole mess. Jet Blue cancelled 25% of its flights this past week. Another 20% experienced delays lasting several hours. Alaska Airlines, same deal.

It's always easier for companies to shutdown, and furlough, (basically fire) employees, than it is to start back up and get going again. A lot of these carriers will never fully recover. It's hard enough for an airline to make money when things are going good.

https://thepointsguy.com/news/jetblue-other-airlines-cancel-flights/
Click to expand...
There was one airline that kept all of its pilots, and added air planes, during COVID.

The industry has problems.

But not every company “failed” to anticipate the need for more pilots.

Not every company failed to anticipate the travel recovery.

simpleflying.com

Why United Airlines Isn’t Worried About A Pilot Shortage

United's CEO touted a corporate culture that he believes attracts employees.
simpleflying.com simpleflying.com
 
Astro14 said:
There was one airline that kept all of its pilots, and added air planes, during COVID.

The industry has problems.

But not every company “failed” to anticipate the need for more pilots.

Not every company failed to anticipate the travel recovery.

simpleflying.com

Why United Airlines Isn’t Worried About A Pilot Shortage

United's CEO touted a corporate culture that he believes attracts employees.
simpleflying.com simpleflying.com
Click to expand...
I suspect you are in a place where you can confirm the touted corporate culture is a real positive, or just PR hype.

That was an interesting word choice for the article as touted has the following definition: "attempt to sell (something), typically by pestering people in an aggressive or bold manner."

I do hope it's better than that :)
 
I’m genuinely pleased by the culture here. My airline treats pilots well. We treat each other well. I‘ve got lots of examples, but this is a great place to be a pilot.

The most junior pilot at the airline is known as the “Eight Ball”. Every week, as a new class of pilots starts, we have an “Eight Ball Ceremony” in which a new pilot becomes the Eight Ball. Last week’s Eight Ball ceremoniously passes the ball (a large bowling ball that has been in pilot hands for decades) to the new Eight Ball.

It’s a long tradition. The class above mine, in 1997, managed to abscond with the ball when our junior pilot wasn’t looking. It cost us a dozen pizzas (enough for both classes to enjoy lunch) in order to get it back.

The ceremony itself is a big party. Food. Drinks. The whole nine yards. Paid for by older pilots as a welcome aboard.

Not the Union. Not the company. Pilots pick up the check for the new pilots.

When a “half winger”, which is a first year pilot, goes flying with me, they don’t need their wallet. Layover dinner and drinks are on the Captain, though senior FOs have, on occasion, fought me to pick up the check for the half winger.

Pilots here look out for each other.

Our CEO wants to win. It’s so clear in everything he says and does. So, improving the customer experience, new airplanes, new routes, taking care of employees, are all part of it.

I work hard. Long hours. Long days. Often gone. But when I need something, like time off for a wedding, or funeral, or graduation, I get it without question.

I was hospitalized in Aurora, CO a few years go. The next morning, my wife and oldest daughter were on a plane from Norfolk to Denver. Ticket covered by United. My mother in law passed away a couple of weeks ago. My boss at the training center dropped my next several days of work. Paid leave. Then my scheduler rewrote my month to get me ten days off in a row.

This is a great place to be.

My roles as instructor (Check Airman and in the simulator) are a lot more work than just flying, and they don’t get me much extra pay, but I’m often the first Captain that new pilots fly with. I’m able to set the tone. I’m at the point in my career where I am grateful for the opportunity to shape the culture of the future through how I treat my fellow pilots.
 
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I have three close friends (we met in first grade in 1959 and still see each other!) who were career pilots and flew for the majors; United, American, and UPS. Retirement couldn't come soon enough for all three of them. It wasn't because they disliked flying, they disliked the business.

Scott

Edit: But I suppose that's true of any career. I had a cushy, highly paid engineering job with a Fortune 100 company; 28 years with the same company. I was pretty much my own boss the final 10 years and continued to get excellent raises and stock options, but I grew to dislike the business so much I retired at age 52 - and I did it without a pension!

Edit #2: My UPS pilot friend retired flying these internationally. I was always envious of his career. As a footnote, his favorite plane of all time was the DC-8.

ups7478.jpg
 
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Dave Hess said:

Airlines hiring buses to transport passengers between airports during pilot shortage​


nypost.com

Airlines hiring buses to transport passengers between airports during pilot shortage

The pilot shortage will likely cause ticket prices to skyrocket as airlines have been forced to ground some of their fleet, increasing demand.
nypost.com nypost.com


.
Click to expand...


Just to point out, these destinations are pretty close to the airport. Most people commute longer distances to their airport than this. 50 or 70 miles is not that long of a drive not that long of a bus trip.

As mentioned already, some airlines had vision beyond the pandemic. They are the quickest ones to recover.
 
Jet Blue admitted today what we all knew: they’re losing pilots to the big three.


Pilots talk. They know who treats them better.

Jet Blue benefitted tremendously from 9-11. Their timing couldn’t have been better. Airlines were canceling orders, manufacturers were desperate to sell airplanes. Airlines were furloughing pilots, and Jet Blue was hiring.

They didn’t have to work very hard to attract talent. Their contract was weak, but the airline was growing, so pilots moved up, and they felt pretty good about Jet Blue. Then Jet Blue cut a lot of the overtime rules, cut pilot pay, and stopped growing as quickly. They started re-assigning pilots, changing their schedules involuntarily.

Now, Jet Blue’s weak contract, poor growth, uncertainty surrounds a merger, coupled with poor treatment of pilots, has a lot of their younger pilots leaving for greener pastures.

I’ve known for a while - I fly with them.

They’re really happy to be here. We pay them better. Treat them better. Have better growth prospects.
 
I received an E-Mail notification of a reply on this thread, that seems to have since disappeared. It touched on the Covid vaccine as a reason for a lot of these personnel issues that companies are facing today. Jet Blue among the many.

This is relevant... And not just in the airline industry. This has affected the transportation industry, along with the completely screwed up manufacturing and supply chain across the board. Not just the cockpits of airliners. Trucking and delivery services have all lost many employees who have refused to conform.

I'm not going to argue should or shouldn't. Not my pig, or my farm. But we're seeing the direct result.... Everywhere. Just in my little desert town, businesses are facing hiring dilemmas. Jobs are everywhere, but no one applys. They ALL can't be having difficulty hiring due to poor pay.

Places like restaurants and big box stores now have seemingly permanent signs in the window stating, "We Are Hiring!"...... To go along with all of their empty shelves from lack of regular deliveries.

Go try to purchase a new kitchen range, or fridge / freezer, and you'll see what I mean. Hell, I've even had issues trying to buy dog food.

The fact is a LOT of this is due to this vaccine in one way, shape, form or another. People just didn't decide to quit their jobs, sit on their rears, and purposely place themselves into financial ruin. Mortgage foreclosures and personal bankruptcies are on the rise, while jobs and employment are everywhere.

And judging by how many people are not working, in direct relationship to the number of jobs that companies are all but begging to be filled by employers across the board, it's the only valid exclamation. I've never seen anything like this in my entire life.
 
Astro14 said:
Jet Blue admitted today what we all knew: they’re losing pilots to the big three.


Pilots talk. They know who treats them better.

Jet Blue benefitted tremendously from 9-11. Their timing couldn’t have been better. Airlines were canceling orders, manufacturers were desperate to sell airplanes. Airlines were furloughing pilots, and Jet Blue was hiring.

They didn’t have to work very hard to attract talent. Their contract was weak, but the airline was growing, so pilots moved up, and they felt pretty good about Jet Blue. Then Jet Blue cut a lot of the overtime rules, cut pilot pay, and stopped growing as quickly. They started re-assigning pilots, changing their schedules involuntarily.

Now, Jet Blue’s weak contract, poor growth, uncertainty surrounds a merger, coupled with poor treatment of pilots, has a lot of their younger pilots leaving for greener pastures.

I’ve known for a while - I fly with them.

They’re really happy to be here. We pay them better. Treat them better. Have better growth prospects.
Click to expand...
We used to have JetBlue as a customer. They were unpleasant to deal with.

They got rid of their E-190s for the A220.

Nobody was sorry to see them go.
 
billt460 said:
I received an E-Mail notification of a reply on this thread, that seems to have since disappeared. It touched on the Covid vaccine as a reason for a lot of these personnel issues that companies are facing today. Jet Blue among the many.

This is relevant... And not just in the airline industry. This has affected the transportation industry, along with the completely screwed up manufacturing and supply chain across the board. Not just the cockpits of airliners. Trucking and delivery services have all lost many employees who have refused to conform.

I'm not going to argue should or shouldn't. Not my pig, or my farm. But we're seeing the direct result.... Everywhere. Just in my little desert town, businesses are facing hiring dilemmas. Jobs are everywhere, but no one applys. They ALL can't be having difficulty hiring due to poor pay.

Places like restaurants and big box stores now have seemingly permanent signs in the window stating, "We Are Hiring!"...... To go along with all of their empty shelves from lack of regular deliveries.

Go try to purchase a new kitchen range, or fridge / freezer, and you'll see what I mean. Hell, I've even had issues trying to buy dog food.

The fact is a LOT of this is due to this vaccine in one way, shape, form or another. People just didn't decide to quit their jobs, sit on their rears, and purposely place themselves into financial ruin. Mortgage foreclosures and personal bankruptcies are on the rise, while jobs and employment are everywhere.

And judging by how many people are not working, in direct relationship to the number of jobs that companies are all but begging to be filled by employers across the board, it's the only valid exclamation. I've never seen anything like this in my entire life.
Click to expand...
The post to which you refer was both conspiracy theory and political.

It was also wrong.

Covid vaccine mandates had an almost insignificant effect on the pilot shortage that is being discussed here.

Approximately 2% of United pilots were off work for the duration of the policy, they are all back at work.

0%, that's right ZERO, of Southwest pilots were off work because of the Covid vaccine.

The rest of that post was conspiracy theory.

Your post skirts the edge of politics and covid vaccine policy.

I am letting it stand to refute the germane portion of it - that the policy affected pilot staffing.

It did not significantly affect pilot staffing.

Pilot staffing has been an iceberg on the horizon of our industry for a decade. Despite seeing it, only now is the industry taking steps to address the problem.

United, in particular, is leading the industry in establishing dedicated flight training facilities, opportunities, outreach, and even financing.
 
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