TO DEAL WITH THE SHORTAGE, the airlines are making profound changes to pilot employment contracts. In South Africa, SAA has increased the retirement age from 63 to 65. In the USA the much-protested minimum requirement of a 1500 hr ATPL to get into the right seat has quietly been dropped.
Also in South Africa, we are seeing massive recruitment drives to suck up South African pilots for the world’s airlines. Many are finding the attractions of no load-shedding, a safe environment for their families, and large sometimes tax-free, dollar-based salaries, very attractive.
But pilot recruitment strategies that poach from other airlines, or extend retirement age, or reduce entry requirements, are still not going to be enough to meet the shortfall caused by the loss of up to 40% of the pilots due to retirements during Covid and cut backs by the airlines.
At the same time there has been an exponential rise in Artificial Intelligence systems. And so there has been increasing noise about a move to single pilot cockpits.
The idea that technology has advanced far enough to make pilots redundant fascinates the general flying public, not to mention all the professional pilots who may one day lose their jobs to a computer.
Basic automation has been making the skilful parts of flying an airliner easy. Autoland has already been around for fifty years. It is reported that pilots spend on average just six minutes actually hand-flying the plane on each flight. And now satellite communication (think Starlink) will make it possible for an air traffic controller to step in and take control of an airliner if the only pilot onboard is incapacitated.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة June 2023 من SA Flyer Magazine.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة June 2023 من SA Flyer Magazine.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
SACRIFICE
John continues his anecdotes about the sacrifices he has had to make in the course of his helicopter bush flying career.
KENYA - SAA PARTNERSHIP DELAY
KENYA AIRWAYS AND South African Airways announced the establishment of a highly anticipated Pan-African Airline Group three years ago.
TO PARIS FOR LUNCH
One morning I arrived back at Lanseria from a two day charter to a dreary Northern Cape iron mine. Entering the terminal, I removed my wings and epaulets, thrust them into my flight bag, and headed for the restaurant.
ASCA'S MPUMI MPOFU: READY FOR TAKE-OFF
Ms Mpumi Mpofu has occupied the hot seat as Chief Executive of ACSA, the Airports Company of South Africa for a tumultuous past four years.
HYDROGEN POWERED PLANE TESTED
WORLD’S LARGEST liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft, using a 1 MW fuel cell engine, has been tested.
CAMEROON - BLAMES BOEING
BOEING JUST CANNOT STAY out of trouble. It has become the whipping boy for endless absurd claims.
IRIS GOES TO SOMALIA
Having spent the last couple of years flying to a rota, I was thoroughly enjoying the freedom and randomness of flying charters at Sunbird Aviation.
TELEPORTATION
One of the best clients for whom I ever flew was BP, the British oil giant. I was with them in Algeria for about seven years, from the very start of their large gas projects, right in the heart of the Sahara Desert, near the small towns of In Amenas and In Salah.
FEBRUARY 2023
February has shown steady growth in the number of aircraft registered. Four fixed wing and one helicopter were added while the non-type certified (NTCA) register grew by seven.
RIGHT SEAT RULES NO. 16 FUEL SYSTEMS WHY SO COMPLICATED?
You know those aggranoying people who say, “Oh I wouldn't fly in one of those little things - you can't just pull over and fix it if something goes wrong\"? What makes this particularly irritating is that the bastards are right.