Considerations for new USA airline pilots:
1. There is going to be a shortage of new candidates...the costs of training for Private/Commercial are skyrocketing. Typically, new pilots were taking out loans of 40k-80k to get qualified, and are looking at typical initial salaries at the Regionals of 18k-22k. Already training for Private pilots is drying up...banks will not make loans with such prospects, and candidates choose more remunerative pursuits, with less initial required investment. Add to that, the Feds (post-Colgan crash) are close watching histories of busted check-rides, with 2 or 3 considered enough to deny any further chance of being hired or upgraded. Besides ckrides, the medical could down you at any time. Banks are NOT loaning to new pilots, with good reason.
2. The experience required to legitimately pass a PIC Type Rating ride for an ATP on a regional jet is usually much higher than the typical CFI flying 172s for 1500 hours has. This gap looks very wide...the training for this ride will take a factor of 1.5 to 2 times the standard training footprint, and may still not be enough, depending on the student. Typically the 250 hr co-pilot got experience watching from the rh seat...this valuable source of experience will be closed.
3. There are two exceptions to the 1500 hour requirement being considered: 1st, military pilots. The rate of military pilots being trained has been drastically reduced. Those that are there have a choice...a military career with guaranteed good pay and benefits, with good retirement AND respect, vrs. leaving the military and joining a Regional with crap pay and benefits, potential furloughs and bankruptcies, and probably a crap retirement (with exceptional luck). A pilot that made such a choice might be considered to lack the judgement to be a good pilot candidate...this is a modern Catch 22. 2nd, students graduating from formal flying schools. These usually graduate CFI's with Private and Commercial...they leave with NO heavy or airline background. To include any airline-type training would be prohibitively expensive, so you still have that huge gap referred to above. Tough times a'comin' I'm thinking. Sam
Last edited by Semaphore Sam; 17th May 2012 at 05:30.