G'Day TonKat. I think that most of us can apprieciate that the 457 program is designed to attract overseas workers to Australia to meet the shortage of skills in certain industies. However, air pilotage is not one of them.
It should be fairly evident that there are many professional pilots who are Australian citizens who are qualified and willing to return to Australia to meet a shortfall of crews at certain airlines. Further, there are many qualified and experienced Pilots who reside in Australia who are ready and willing to take these positions, if they were offered.
The real crux of the issue remains that in many companies where there is a requirement for aircrews, the problem has been one of pay that is not commensurate with the required skills set. growth in the industry has meant that many Pilots in both regional and major airlines have moved to other companies where the pay and conditions are better; the "Pilot shortage" can be solved by improving T&Cs at Australian air carriers.
So the "Pilot shortage" is an artificial and solveable one. All that is required is that Australian Pilots recieve market rates for their skills. The use of 457 visas in this instance is an abuse of what the 457 program was intended to be about. The program was designed to cover labour and skills shortfalls in critical industries. It was never supposed to be used as a means of keeping award conditions at the levels of the early 1990's.