There are several thousand highly qualified furloughed or otherwise out of work airline pilots in the US.
Many are experienced captains with long tenure, whose airlines failed.
The catch? Many,if not most, are not current.
The few big airlines hiring now seem to require currency.
I know of a 20-year experienced international B-757 and B-737NG captain whose airline went suddenly out of business some two years ago.
He was recently flying a single engine recip paying peanuts. That company just went out of business.
He attended a jobs fair a few months ago. Only two major airlines- Korean and an Indian airline- were hiring. Neither would consider non-current pilots. The only other airline hiring, a Q-400 operator, wouldn't even talk to him (apparently because they paid so little they thought experienced captains would soon leave if industry conditions improve). They said, "You wouldn't be happy here."
At the job fair, he met five pilots from his former company. All five are divorced or getting divorced; all five have lost their homes or are losing their homes. (Wouldn't have wanted to be at that post-fair bar session.)
How does one get "current" in a B-757 or B-737NG? In practical terms, one doesn't, especially if way behind on the mortgage and with no assurance of employment.
Seems like no pilot shortage here!
