[Regulator]

So I was trying to quantify the difference in numbers.

I believe that in the late ‘60s, USAF was training ~ 4000 pilots / yr, Navy about half that. Army was doing 6000 helo pilots at the height of the war, IIRC! All 19 YO WO’s, Ft. Rucker was a zoo...

And now it’s ~ 1500 USAF, 1200 Navy? I can’t even guess the Army numbers.

Perhaps you can enlighten? In addition to non-existent flight hours.

[SkyPilot]

I think it's a combination of the factors you pointed out.

Yes, the military is producing far less pilots. The Air Force and Navy aircraft tails are far, far fewer than we had back in the 70s, 80s, or 90s. The Air Force closed two pilot training bases in the early 90s as well.

On top of this, general aviation in the US is dying. When I was a kid, there were many airports around me where aviation was blooming. I soloed at age 16, and could fly before I could drive a car. I used to ride my bycycle to a grass strip airport in the summer to go flying.

Today, general aviation is not only expensive, it can be a hassle. Increased regulation combined with expense have frozen out the generation that was to replace the old heads.

[CodeToad]

On top of that, it is not uncommon to see a military pilot with only 600 total hours. Flying time has been drastically cut.