Desperate to add more pilots, US airlines are cutting training hours and dropping experience requirements

(by Phil Shiver | The Blaze) – The U.S. pilot shortage has reportedly gotten so bad that airlines and carriers have started dropping experience requirements and cutting the number of training hours needed in order to fly their planes, Business Insider reported over the weekend.

What are the details?

Earlier this year, Delta joined other major airlines in announcing an end to its long-standing requirement that pilots possess four-year degrees in hopes of attracting more candidates to the industry. The achievement is now only a “preferred” criterion.

“While we feel as strongly as ever about the importance of education, there are highly qualified candidates — people who we would want to welcome to our Delta family — who have gained more than the equivalent of a college education through years of life and leadership experience,” Delta wrote in its Jan. 6 announcement. “Making the four-year degree requirement preferred removes unintentional barriers to our Delta flight decks.”

Republic Airways, the nation’s second-largest regional carrier, which reportedly operates on behalf of several major airlines — including Delta, American, and United — took an even bolder approach by seeking to trim the number of required training hours for pilots in half.

In a petition filed with the Federal Aviation Administration in April, Republic asked permission to bring the number of mandatory flight hours down to 750 from 1,500 hours. Even now, the carrier has exemptions in place for candidates with degrees that cut the required hours down to 1,000. Read Full Article >