AIR Inc. tells us that the airline industry lifted
off into 2003 continuing its pace of modest hiring which
characterized 2002. A total of 471 pilots were hired in
January. AIR, Inc. projects the industry will hire 7,075
new pilots in 2003.
In January, 99 of the 199 total (50%) airlines/operators
reporting to AIR, Inc. hired pilots. The major airlines hired 60
pilots with five of the 14 (36%) carriers expected to hire over the
next several months. In the national airlines segment, the most
active, 14 of 32 (44%) hired a total of 236 new pilots. The jet
operators hired 72; fractional companies hired 17. The non-jet
operators hired 57 new pilots. At the end of January, the total
number of pilots on furlough increased to 8,311 (8.79%), compared
to 7,475 (7.9%) in December out of the total of 94,571 active
airline pilots.
Bankrupt United Airlines (UAL) announced plans Jan. 29 to
create a low-cost subsidiary airline to enable UAL to compete with
established low-cost carriers, especially Southwest Airlines. The
low-cost carrier proposal is part of UAL's new business plan,
revealed Jan. 30 to board members but not made public. Also on Jan.
29, Delta Air Lines (DAL) formally introduced its new low-cost
operation, "Song." The new wholly-owned DAL subsidiary will begin
operations April 15 on JFK-West Palm Beach. The new carrier will
replace Delta Express and, when at full strength, will operate a
fleet of 36 Boeing B-757s. On Jan. 27, Federal Express received the
first of 8 ATR 42-320s purchased from Continental Airlines. The
ATRs will support the FedEx feeder network supporting the trunk
system. Allegiant Air announced Jan. 22 the acquisition of two
additional MD-83s. Including the new aircraft, Allegiant's fleet
grows to three MD-83s and two MD-87s.
The West Coast region Airline Pilot Career Seminar, Airline
Forum, and Job Fair will be held in Los Angeles, CA (LAX), at the
Sheraton Gateway Hotel Saturday, April 12.
Airlines
currently signed on to attend include: Alaska Airlines, Atlantic
Coast Airlines, ATA, Comair, Flight Options, and NW
Airlink/Pinnacle Airlines. Airlines invited to attend include:
FedEx, Southwest Airlines, AirTran, American Eagle Airlines, ASA
and many others. The seminar will feature topics on the pilot
hiring market, job search planning, pre-employment medical exams,
interviewing, written testing, and
applications/résumés/cover letters.
Six Career Workshops will also be conducted. The first three
workshops will be held Friday afternoon and evening, April 11,
featuring CRM, Military/Airline Transition, and Civilian/Airline
Transition. Covered Sunday will be Interview Survival, Airline
Testing/Simulator Checks, and Résumés/Cover
Letters/Applications. The next seminar is planned for Atlanta (ATL)
on June 21, 2003.
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