Gesamt
← Back to Squawk list
Airlines Fear Pilot Shortage Amid New Federal Safety Rules
The head of the Regional Airlines Association notes the new regulation is roughly triple the number of hours many commuter airlines require today, and he says it will mean lots of otherwise qualified pilots won't be able to get jobs. (www.npr.org) Mehr...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
I am about a month away from obtaining my instrument rating and then I shall go onto my multi before attending FIT in the fall so I can get my degree. The 1,500 hour requirement really does make you wonder though. Luckily for me I am a british citizen so I might just move back home and try my luck with the cheap european airlines once I am done with everything.
I can't tell you what to do, BUT, personally I would go ahead and finish my instrument and get the multi engine. Reason being is that you really can't do much without the ME and while a good possibilty, that 1500hr rule is not the law of the land YET, but with the ME you might at least get something to do for a low hour pilot. Even if you did go back home you will still need it.That said, the degree can't be totally overlooked either.
I'd be happy to see the work go back to mainline airlines and aircraft.
Wouldn't we all, and probably, maybe not in our lifetime, it probably will, maybe.
The Colgan crash was a major incident and is not to be downplayed by any means. All the hooplah that came out of it regarding pilot training is well and good. That said, another 1000 hours or so is not necessarily going to raise experience level in a particular Aircraft type. Most required training can be gained in 500 hours or way less. Should one be able to afford it, that additional 1000 hours could be spent circling in a C150, gaining not 1 iota of time in a CRJ or dash 8, and having lost a good portion of original training by it not really being current. We have nowhere near the stringent rquirements to get a regular driver's license or a CDL that we have to get a pilot's license, yet on that same day of the Colgan crash, there were 300+ traffic fatalities across the country. No outcries were raised on these because they weren't all in one place at one time, but dead is dead and somebody was at fault in each one. Congress has jumped in here where they have no expertise instead of leaving it to the FAA and/or people that know. IMHO
Clearly this regulation was written by a JD and not an ATP. Too often that's the pattern. Something bad happens, Congress responds by railroading some legislation through so they can brag about how bipartisan they are in the next election cycle, and three election cycles later when nobody cares anymore, the legislation takes effect and causes problems that they can solve with another layer of legislation.
Tombstone rulings... Just look at the FAA... They are full of them. Someone has to die to get a new law..