As we struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic and what it means for our new America, it can be hard for sectors like the airline industry to recover fully. The pandemic made it difficult for anyone to travel by air, and many pilots had to seek alternative employment after the pandemic shut down some airlines and made it harder to travel by air. So, what is going on with the current pilot shortage?
Why Is There a Pilot Shortage?
When it comes to pilot shortages, there are a few different reasons why there are fewer pilots for smaller airlines than you might imagine. Larger airlines have had to cut down on staffing as COVID-19 surges and wanes and as the need for those staff has changed. Staffing is short and pilots found there simply was not work for them for nearly two years.
Most people cannot go for two years without a job or with severely cut hours, and a business like an airline cannot keep these highly paid professionals on staff when sanctions that kept planes out of the air and people on the ground. The severely cut schedule, the reduced need for planes and for flights, and the reduced overall customer numbers made it hard for airlines to keep pilots and other staff on hand to actually do the job.
The main issue is that many airlines had to furlough or lay off pilots to cut their losses and keep their profits in the black during the pandemic. Some staff members and pilots just took early retirement and did not return when the airlines started to recover.
Do Airlines Need Pilots?
Airlines are certainly struggling and do in fact have a need for more pilots. For a full recovery, most airlines will need an influx of both seasoned pilots and new pilots to start helping get these planes back in the air and get people traveling again.
Most airlines are hurting for employees of all types as there are now more flights taking off and more and more countries are allowing people to come and go. Though the pandemic is far from over, many industries, the airline industry included, have started to move toward recovery and toward figuring out what the new normal is going to look like.
Airlines need new staff of all sorts, but especially pilots, if they want to recover and come anywhere near where they were before the pandemic hit. The pandemic set our world on end, we are just now working to try and set it back upright.