Yep won't it just give you a nice warm fuzzy when you walk onto a plane and see these guys are your pilots?
Posted on 02/12/2014 6:54:34 AM PST by Red in Blue PA
A widening shortage of U.S. airline pilots is spotlighting the structure of an industry built on starting salaries for regional-airline pilots that are roughly equivalent to fast-food wages.
The shortage's toll rose Tuesday, as Republic Airways Holdings Inc., one of the nation's largest regional carriers, said it would remove 27 of its 243 aircraft from operation because it couldn't find enough qualified pilots. The news, which followed service disruptions at other airlines, sent Republic's shares down 4.1% to finish at $9.45.
Starting pilot salaries at 14 U.S. regional carriers average $22,400 a year, according to the largest U.S. pilots union. Some smaller carriers pay as little as $15,000 a year. The latter is about what a full-time worker would earn annually at the $7.25-an-hour federal minimum wage.
Regional carriers are a key link in the U.S. air-travel system. Big airlines, whose pilot salaries are much higher, outsource about half of their domestic flights to these smaller partners to save money.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.yahoo.com ...
That's crazy!! School bus drivers make more than that!
I don’t believe this ....the source is their union.
As the US standard of living declines, the number of air miles for leisure likely will also. Doesn’t bode well for the industry.
The WSJ usually researches things like this before they go to print. I trust the WSJ.
Aside from the TSA issues I have one reason I stopped flying was the Vietnam era pilots all retired. The new guys aren’t really good at flying the plane as much as they are programming the autopilot.
The smaller, regional planes do not have that autopilot unless I am mistaken.
Yep won't it just give you a nice warm fuzzy when you walk onto a plane and see these guys are your pilots?
PEOPLE AREN’T FLYING! You can thank the TSA. I used to fly 3-4 times a year. Cross country flights were $99. Gasoline costs twice as much under the Great One. Business? Try videoconferencing. That one I’m ok with. Gov’ment is the turd in the punch bowl.
The truth of the argument on wages is not being taught to the American worker.
There are two points on the wage line that everyone must consider. Those two points are simply this:
- you will never be paid less than what you are willing to work for.
- you will never be paid more than what it costs to replace you.
$22,000 average salary for an average of 10 hours of flying a week as co-pilot with an instructor pilot. It is literally on the job training, which all things considered, is a pretty good salary for that type of position. The regular pilots for regionals average far closer to $60,000. Which is the other group the unions really want to bleed for the money, as these are also the same qualified pilots who step up to the bat when the pilots union goes on strike.
Always the same song and dance - pick someone who might gain some sympathy from the public, imply that they are something more than what they are, with the end goal of giving more money and power to the union.
That has always been the case. Most pilots work 10-15 years before they make a decent living.
After decades of being too many pilots, there is a huge international demand for them.
All these kids go into debt learning to fly in Florida. Then they get beginner jobs. It was always their dream to fly.
Yes they do. The DeHavilland Dash-8 (37-seat twin turboprop) even has autoland.
That's true for European and Asian pilots. There are still better standards here in America.
Nothing as low as mentioned in the article but some pretty low numbers for some of the regionals.
https://www.aviationinterviews.com/pilot/airlinepayrates.html
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