CAT Editor-in-Chief Rick Adams, FRAeS, talks with Kit Darby, one of the leading experts on professional pilot careers about the state of the North American aviation market – recovery, retirements, furloughs, pay packages, and advice for moving to the head of the queue when hiring restarts (perhaps sooner than you think).

The first section of this five part series is on Airline Recovery Scenarios and the Impact of Pilot Retirements.

Kit Darby outlines possible airline recovery models, pilot retirements at the major US airlines, scenarios for the resumption of pilot hiring, and a comparison of airline early-retirement offers. 

Missed the maintenance sessions of our APATS 2020 virtual conference? Don't worry, you can catch up with all the final day discussion here. 

CAT Editor-in-Chief Rick Adams, FRAeS, talks with Kit Darby, one of the leading experts on professional pilot careers about the state of the North American aviation market – recovery, retirements, furloughs, pay packages, and advice for moving to the head of the queue when hiring restarts (perhaps sooner than you think).

The second section of this five part series is on Furloughs, Leaves of Absence, and the US CARES Act .

Kit discusses “what scares him more” than the coronavirus.  Also, furloughs, leaves of absence, and what happens when the CARES Act expires in October.

Missed the second day sessions of our APATS 2020 virtual conference? Don't worry, you can catch up with all the cabin crew discussion here. 

As the Covid-19 pandemic persists, and students return to campuses across the United States, there has not been a significant decline in the number of students enrolled in pilot-degree programs, according to a survey of aviation educators. Nearly 90% of schools report “little or no change.”

Only one school reported more than 15% cancellations or degree changes. About one-quarter indicated a “melt” of 5-15% in students committed to attending (though up from 10% a month ago). One-third are seeing less than 5% change, and 26.47% indicated all enrolled students plan to attend.

Surprisingly, in the wake of the devastation in the airline industry, nearly 40% of the universities will have a higher number of students than started a year ago. Only 15% expect a lower number, and 36.4% are level with 2019.

Ken Byrnes, Chair of the Flight Training Department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU), who moderates the ad-hoc national group’s periodic Zoom discussions, cautioned, “As the airline industry slows, interest can start to wane,” but he reminded that the process of becoming an airline pilot “is a four- to five-year journey, and the industry is going to need a significant amount of pilots in the near future.”

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