Massive Cancellations at PSA!

[Bluestreak]

Mods: Please don't move this thread to the regionals board. It affects mainline also.

Yesterday US Airways wholly owned express carrier PSA canceled 52 flights due to a pilot shortage. Last week Sunday PSA canceled 45 flights due to lack of crew. I don't have stats for other days of the week, but PSA posted bad numbers I am sure. Take a look at the departures board in CLT if you need to know the extent of the problem.

The situation is so bad that many of PSA's schedulers have quit because of all the stress. One day last week PSA had only one scheduler working per shift because we are so short staffed in scheduling.

PSA is parking two CRJ-200s in July because we can't staff them. Those RJ's were paid for with your bankruptcy concessions at mainline. They will sit unused because management at PSA can't figure out how to staff an airline.

There is no quick fix for PSA's staffing problems. No one wants to work as a pilot at PSA. Right now we have a ground school of six pilots going through. One of them is 19 years old with 400 hours total flying time. PSA has dropped its pilot hiring requirements to commercial multi-engine, no other experience required. PSA now has no maximum hours allowed for IOE; meaning these new pilots will be learning to fly with 70 passengers on board.

 

[Phoenix]

Mods: Please don't move this thread to the regionals board. It affects mainline also.

Yesterday US Airways wholly owned express carrier PSA canceled 52 flights due to a pilot shortage. Last week Sunday PSA canceled 45 flights due to lack of crew. I don't have stats for other days of the week, but PSA posted bad numbers I am sure. Take a look at the departures board in CLT if you need to know the extent of the problem.

The situation is so bad that many of PSA's schedulers have quit because of all the stress. One day last week PSA had only one scheduler working per shift because we are so short staffed in scheduling.

PSA is parking two CRJ-200s in July because we can't staff them. Those RJ's were paid for with your bankruptcy concessions at mainline. They will sit unused because management at PSA can't figure out how to staff an airline.

There is no quick fix for PSA's staffing problems. No one wants to work as a pilot at PSA. Right now we have a ground school of six pilots going through. One of them is 19 years old with 400 hours total flying time. PSA has dropped its pilot hiring requirements to commercial multi-engine, no other experience required. PSA now has no maximum hours allowed for IOE; meaning these new pilots will be learning to fly with 70 passengers on board.

Great... maybe when some of the furloughed pilots non-rev thye would be willing to take the newbies out to lunch and do some ground school so they can learn about what an ATP and FE written are. Oh, never mind, they aren't qualified to take the check yet.

 

[a320av8r]

...Right now we have a ground school of six pilots going through. One of them is 19 years old with 400 hours total flying time. PSA has dropped its pilot hiring requirements to commercial multi-engine, no other experience required. PSA now has no maximum hours allowed for IOE; meaning these new pilots will be learning to fly with 70 passengers on board.

This is not just a PSA problem. ALL of the regionals are having the same difficulty hiring pilots.
Their are just not any pilots out there, period!
Military doesn't have enough pilots and, since that is a better more stable career than airline, retention is easier. Too expensive for civilians, better investment to get a degree in something else.
It is a crappy job and nobody wants to do it anymore.
WN has been cold calling RJ captains to recruit before the other carriers start hiring again. So you can expect this shortage at the mainline carriers in the near future too.
This is one of the reasons that management wants the retirement age raised to 65.

 

[NewHampshire Black Bears]

This is not just a PSA problem. ALL of the regionals are having the same difficulty hiring pilots.
Their are just not any pilots out there, period!
Military doesn't have enough pilots and, since that is a better more stable career than airline, retention is easier. Too expensive for civilians, better investment to get a degree in something else.
It is a crappy job and nobody wants to do it anymore.
WN has been cold calling RJ captains to recruit before the other carriers start hiring again. So you can expect this shortage at the mainline carriers in the near future too.
This is one of the reasons that management wants the retirement age raised to 65.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

I had NOT heard that American Eagle was having that problem.
Perhaps I'm wrong.

NH/BB's

 

[fr8tmastr]

This is not just a PSA problem. ALL of the regionals are having the same difficulty hiring pilots.
Their are just not any pilots out there, period!
Military doesn't have enough pilots and, since that is a better more stable career than airline, retention is easier. Too expensive for civilians, better investment to get a degree in something else.
It is a crappy job and nobody wants to do it anymore.
WN has been cold calling RJ captains to recruit before the other carriers start hiring again. So you can expect this shortage at the mainline carriers in the near future too.
This is one of the reasons that management wants the retirement age raised to 65.

I dont think the pilot shortage is that bad yet, I think that the pay and quality of life has gotten so bad that these pilots are not bothering to go back to work, or start in the first place. How many of the furloughed pilots at the majors have just said "screw it"? Bottom line is, I agree with you in that if pay and QOL does not get better, and fast, there will be a shortage big time at the regionals, and then eventually, what's left of the majors.

 

[EMBFA]

I dont think the pilot shortage is that bad yet, I think that the pay and quality of life has gotten so bad that these pilots are not bothering to go back to work, or start in the first place. How many of the furloughed pilots at the majors have just said "screw it"? Bottom line is, I agree with you in that if pay and QOL does not get better, and fast, there will be a shortage big time at the regionals, and then eventually, what's left of the majors.

The industry simply can't go on much longer paying poverty wages. Once the 'legacy' generation is gone the nations airlines systems will be even worse off than they are now. Individual airlines have cut to the bare bone to a point where customer service is nearly non-existent and reliability is done. Safety will be next to go.

The 'regionals' are getting scary with the pilot hiring. Its a sick cycle. Consumers want unsustainable fares far below even covering costs, majors want to outsource to the cheapest provider, the regionals continue to lower compensation to near minimum wage, and in turn have to lower thier standards more to attract people to even do the job. 19 years old? I wouldn't make out with a 19 year old much less let one fly me around in a commercial airplane.

Who ever thought there would be a shortage of people wanting to be airline pilots?

The industry is going to continue to decline until something major happens. Hopefully its something like some sort of mass strike by airline employees and not a rash of crashes or incidents. Wake up America! Air transport is not the industry to be cutting corners in or using the absolute lowest and cheapest. There needs to be either mass consolidation or better yet, re-regulate the airlines.

 

[Jimmy Neutron]

The industry is going to continue to decline until something major happens. Hopefully its something like some sort of mass strike by airline employees and not a rash of crashes or incidents. Wake up America! Air transport is not the industry to be cutting corners in or using the absolute lowest and cheapest. There needs to be either mass consolidation or better yet, re-regulate the airlines.

Dream on----------As long as the people in this country have that "It's all about me." attitude, and we continue to let the current govt. administration devalue the working class in this we could soon see what could amount to basic slavery making its way back into our world......

Every day we are becoming more and more like other 3rd world countries......

 

[ringmaruf]

19 years old? I wouldn't make out with a 19 year old much less let one fly me around in a commercial airplane.

I wish I had a 19 year old to make out with, (having just reached the ancient age of 23 on Wednesday).


But I do agree with your point.

 

[oldiebutgoody]

After reading this thread, it's becoming obvious that the main reason the gov't and airlines want the age 60 rule changed is so that they can continue paying poverty level wages in most of the industry. Hmmm...makes one think...

 

[BuffaloJoe]

Looks like Russell Casse will finally fly airliners instead of cropdusters.

 

[Wannabe Airways]

Republic is in the same boat, 40 cancelled two weekends ago and 47 cancelled this weekend. They cant staff either, half of the sked department quit last week. Sinking ship, jump now.

 

[NCflyer]

Some of you old timers correct me if I am wrong, but back in the 80's wasn't even United Airlines hiring pilots with only 500 hours total time?

If that is true, what is the difference between hiring a pilot with 500 hours 25 years ago and hiring one today?

 

[john john]

Back in the good old boy days with Piedmont(mainline) you better believe some low hours hiring was being done. And PI had some 3 year wonder captains too.Express is express always is and will be entree level pay and hours and dreams for the big ones, not so much now but the dream still lives on.

 

[FM2436]

I’d like to see US Airways Express implement some type of a preferred hiring program with some of the major college aviation programs. Several airlines do this and track the flight training performance (and overall GPA) of some of the better performing college graduates. You get to offer the cream of the crop a F/O job under a timed contract. If during the period/time the new hire leaves, he/she would pay some penalty fee. For selfish reasons I’d love to see Piedmont open some form of its own flight Academy.

 

[nethan]

Great... so we would be encouraging low time pilots with wet ink commercials and no practical flight experience to come work here. But wait... that's ok, their GPA is good!

Nothing against Riddle/UND guys but the LAST thing I want to see is a pipeline for low timers who have little to none CFI or actual flying experience.

I think a better solution (and PDT at least started to do it) is offer better rewards, both financial and QOL, for people to come work in the USX system.