For the past four years or so, the continuous pilot shortage has been one of the aviation industry’s enduring problems. Although some thought it was a temporary issue, the development in the pilot shortage forecasts over the past few years has shown that the gap is still getting wider. While fully solving the problem might take years, pilot training academies and partnerships with airlines can help guarantee the industry’s long-term viability. 

In 2023, industry leaders were already sounding the alarm about the pilot shortage. Experts predicted a shortage of between 613,000-649,000 pilots worldwide for 2023-2042, aggravated by the lingering effects of the pandemic on training schedules and hiring freezes—with regions like Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America expected to be the hardest hit. A backlog in pilot training pipelines and the post-pandemic recovery, which increased demand for air travel, were two factors that contributed to the shortfall. This resulted in increased flight cancellations, aircraft groundings, and reduced capacity during peak seasons. 

“2023 was a turning point for the majority of the industry—the infrastructure for pilot training had a hard time keeping up with the increase in demand while airlines were recuperating from the pandemic,” explained Marijus Ravoitis, CEO at BAA Training, one of Europe’s leading approved training organizations. “This was an early warning sign of a much larger issue at hand. Which, looking at it today, is still prevalent.” 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *