American Airlines to recruit and hire 1,500 pilots over five years

[La Li Lu Le Lo]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/la-fi-mo-american-to-hire-pilots-20130930,0,3897640.story
 
By Hugo Martin
11:40 a.m. CDT, September 30, 2013

 

Although American Airlines' parent company is still in bankruptcy and a merger with US Airways is on hold, the Fort Worth-based airline is moving forward with plans to grow.

American Airlines announced Monday that it plans to recruit and hire 1,500 pilots over the next five years, with the job openings to be posted Oct. 1.
The new pilots are in addition to the 1,500 new flight attendants and 1,200 agents the airline has begun to recruit this year. (Interested candidates are encouraged to visit aacareers.com.)
 
Some of the new pilots will be needed to fly the more than 500 new planes ordered by the airline in 2011, shortly before its parent company, AMR Corp., filed for bankruptcy.
Some of the recruits will replace pilots who are retiring, and others are needed to meet staffing requirements under new rules imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration to give pilots more rest between shifts.
The airline said that it plans to initially hire about 45 to 50 pilots a month through the summer of 2014.
"American takes great pride in the exceptional quality of our pilots, and we’re excited to continue building our team through this selective hiring and recruitment process," said John Hale, American's vice president for flights.
Even with the additional pilots and flight attendants, American will fall short of returning to the staff total the airline reached just over two years ago.
The U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics reports that American Airlines employed 66,400 full-time equivalent workers in April, 2011. Two years later, the airline employs the equivalent of 59,047 workers, according to the federal agency.
A plan to merge American Airlines and US Airways has been challenged by the U.S. Department of Justice, with a trial scheduled to begin Nov. 25.
 
http://www.newson6.com/story/23566675/american-airlines-plans-to-hire-1500-pilots

 

[jimntx]

This was news when it was posted on AirlineForums on Sept. 30, 2013. 
 
http://www.airlineforums.com/topic/56196-american-airlines-plans-to-hire-1500-pilots/

 

[Bob Owens]

Ran into a former AA pilot a few years ago in DFW who said he would never come back to AA and was flying for a freighter outfit that treated him very well. Seems like AA is experiencing the same thing with the pilot group that they are with maintenance, when they lay them off they don't come back, and with them goes thousands of dollars in in training that has to be done all over again with new hires, offsetting savings, let alone the loss of experience.

 

[1AA]

But Bob you don't see the big picture. Just wait until it comes to full circle.
On another note, AA has a soldier of qualified and trained pilots at its disposal.
American Eagle. AA always stated that American Eagle is losing money and AA has unsuccessfully tried to sell off Eagle. Now is the opportunity with all the new aircraft coming into play. Eagle might be the last batch of qualified pilots AA has at its disposal.
AA can fly 319's in eagle markets. Other carriers fly mainline jets in the same cities we fly smaller RJ's.

 

[Bob Owens]

But Bob you don't see the big picture. Just wait until it comes to full circle.
On another note, AA has a soldier of qualified and trained pilots at its disposal.
American Eagle. AA always stated that American Eagle is losing money and AA has unsuccessfully tried to sell off Eagle. Now is the opportunity with all the new aircraft coming into play. Eagle might be the last batch of qualified pilots AA has at its disposal.
AA can fly 319's in eagle markets. Other carriers fly mainline jets in the same cities we fly smaller RJ's.

That's where all the new hire mechanics are coming from.

 

[1AA]

That's where all the new hire mechanics are coming from.

I see a trend here.

 

[swamt]

Bob and 1AA,   I was under the assumption that the AE pilots and mechanics and even F/A's were givin first choice when openings come available at AA.  Has this changed thru the BK process?  Or is this what they are doing first, then from the street? 

 

[jimntx]

Don't know about pilots, but AE f/as are free to apply with AA whenever we are hiring.  However, as far as I know, they get no special treatment or consideration in the hiring process.  As a matter of fact, I had an AE flight attendant commuting home on one of my flights recently.  She told me that she applied (we are hiring f/as like crazy after the Voluntary Early Out Program), but that she was not selected to attend training.
 
To move from AE to AA, flight attendants have to resign from AE before starting training (for that matter, f/as coming from any airline have to resign from their previous airline before they can start training.  They are then "unemployed" while in training.  There is no pay or training stipend.  The company does provide housing and some meals for trainees.  However, a trainee must take the risk that they can be released from training at any time prior to graduation for almost any reason.  They might be eligible to return to AE, but I don't think so unless AE was hiring.

 

[AdAstraPerAspera]

Don't know about pilots, but AE f/as are free to apply with AA whenever we are hiring.  However, as far as I know, they get no special treatment or consideration in the hiring process.  As a matter of fact, I had an AE flight attendant commuting home on one of my flights recently.  She told me that she applied (we are hiring f/as like crazy after the Voluntary Early Out Program), but that she was not selected to attend training.
 
To move from AE to AA, flight attendants have to resign from AE before starting training (for that matter, f/as coming from any airline have to resign from their previous airline before they can start training.  They are then "unemployed" while in training.  There is no pay or training stipend.  The company does provide housing and some meals for trainees.  However, a trainee must take the risk that they can be released from training at any time prior to graduation for almost any reason.  They might be eligible to return to AE, but I don't think so unless AE was hiring.

 
 
There was an Eagle guy in my training class, he was asked to leave the program about five weeks in. Not sure if he was allowed to return to Eagle or not. Apparently he was asked to roommate with another classmate at the hotel we were staying at, but never did and lied about it… he continued staying in a room by himself which basically was tantamount to stealing from the company, I believe.

 

[La Li Lu Le Lo]

This was news when it was posted on AirlineForums on Sept. 30, 2013. 
 
http://www.airlineforums.com/topic/56196-american-airlines-plans-to-hire-1500-pilots/

 
Thank you jimntx.

 

[swamt]

Don't know about pilots, but AE f/as are free to apply with AA whenever we are hiring.  However, as far as I know, they get no special treatment or consideration in the hiring process.  As a matter of fact, I had an AE flight attendant commuting home on one of my flights recently.  She told me that she applied (we are hiring f/as like crazy after the Voluntary Early Out Program), but that she was not selected to attend training.
 
To move from AE to AA, flight attendants have to resign from AE before starting training (for that matter, f/as coming from any airline have to resign from their previous airline before they can start training.  They are then "unemployed" while in training.  There is no pay or training stipend.  The company does provide housing and some meals for trainees.  However, a trainee must take the risk that they can be released from training at any time prior to graduation for almost any reason.  They might be eligible to return to AE, but I don't think so unless AE was hiring.

The same holds true at SWA for mechanics.  Give up recall rights (from your previous airline) and your in, basically...

 

[PHL]

As airlines need to resume hiring over the next 10 years (and they all will with the growth and retirements), it's going to be interesting to see how the available pilot workforce pans out now that the regionals/commuters cannot hire anyone with less than an ATP.  
 
10 years ago I could have taken my 250 hours total time and multi rating and qualified for an interview at Eagle, Comair, Air Whisky, Colgan, etc. that would at least build me time quicker to become ATP rated and be mainline-ready.  
 
Now you gotta wonder where the new pilots will come from when the existing ATP's are already gainfully employed....

 

[Bob Owens]

As airlines need to resume hiring over the next 10 years (and they all will with the growth and retirements), it's going to be interesting to see how the available pilot workforce pans out now that the regionals/commuters cannot hire anyone with less than an ATP.  
 
10 years ago I could have taken my 250 hours total time and multi rating and qualified for an interview at Eagle, Comair, Air Whisky, Colgan, etc. that would at least build me time quicker to become ATP rated and be mainline-ready.  
 
Now you gotta wonder where the new pilots will come from when the existing ATP's are already gainfully employed....

The crash in SFO may do as much to push the FAA as the Colgan air crash.
Look for increased standards coming at a time where there is a shortage on the horizon. Too bad they only consider us mechanics as safety sensitive when it comes to violating our rights and searching our bodily fluids for the presence of illegal substances. We actually saw our Union actually siding with the A4A against increasing standards for mechanics and establishing realistic duty time limits!

 

[FWAAA]

The crash in SFO may do as much to push the FAA as the Colgan air crash.
Look for increased standards coming at a time where there is a shortage on the horizon.

One of them had 12,400 total hours and 3,200 hours in a 777.    The other had 9,800 total hours and 43 hours in a 777.   He was a captain and had flown 747s and other widebodies.    
 
I don't understand what this crash might do to cause the FAA to increase pilot standards, as these were two very experienced pilots.    My gut reaction is that when all is said and done, this crash will be pinned on pilots who weren't paying attention as their plane slowed to 34 knots below their target approach speed.   They simply stopped flying the airplane and let it fall to the ground.  
 
I agree that there's a looming shortage as the past decade of wage stagnation (for the luckiest) and wage declines (for most others) combined with very low hiring numbers (thanks to the financial troubles of the past decade plus the change in retirement age) has probably discouraged quite a few young people.   But if there's a shortage, those can usually be solved with higher wages.   Won't be an overnight fix but over the long term, the airlines will find young men and women willing and able to fly.   
 
Mechanics' wages?   Once the supply completely dries up, higher wages will have the same beneficial effect.   Right now, UPS and FedEx have about 2,000 total mechanics on the payroll at their very impressive wages.   Add in WN, with wages that are almost as high, employs about 2,500 more.   Once AA, UA and DL raise their starting pay to $50k and their top-out pay to $100k and begin hiring at those payrates, it won't take too many years to attract qualified candidates.

 

[WorldTraveler]

labor is a market. If there is a need for companies - and eventually consumers - to pay higher wages, then they will.

There are enough qualified aviation professionals and the consolidating industry does provide the real possibility that whatever coming shortages can be dealt with by - reducing capacity in an industry that is much more consolidated.

You don't need larger and larger numbers of workers in the industry if you can pull out capacity and drive up prices at the same time.

That is exactly what has happened over the past few years and will only accelerate even if the DOJ thinks they have some influence or not.