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Has anyone been paying attention to the aviation industry lately?
The FAA sure is making things interesting, and (please detect sarcasm in this next statement) it’s not stressful- at all. According to Forbes and the rest of the mainstream media, November 7th marked a day felt by the majority of the country; they issued an emergency order requiring airlines to cut domestic flights at 40 major airports, citing controller fatigue and understaffing as a serious safety concern.
Per usual, the internet as a whole isn’t helping by overloading everyone with articles, images, and the ever-fabulous optimization of algorithms on social media showing anxious travelers front and center. Be it mild distractions of Starbucks or libation-of-choice at near-to-the-gate barstools, all eyes suddenly come down with a severe case of OCD, focused solely at the departure boards filled with delays and cancellations. Each individual suddenly becomes pious as they are PRAYING they will be one of the lucky ones who make it to their final destination.
Every person within the walls of the Holding Pen finds messages like “Crew unavailable,” “Awaiting pilot,” and “Standby scheduling in progress” old hat, and wouldn’t blink an eye should it populate the Board of Broken Dreams at any second. How about the FAA stepping in with enforced cuts at major hubs? Cancellations are now official policy, rather than just a reflection of staffing gaps.
No one is safe these days.
Hey now, the passengers aren’t the only ones suffering here! Positions in air traffic control, flight operations, ground operations, aircraft maintenance, security, customs and immigration, fire and rescue, passenger services, baggage handling, airport management, finance and administration, facilities and maintenance, retail and concessions, transportation and parking, information technology, communications and public relations, environmental and sustainability management are ALL feeling the brunt of lost wages and broken spirits. It is truly a tragedy that all of this has officially moved from industry whisper to full-blown existential crisis.
I will now focus on the great pilot shortage of 2025.
Unfortunately, none of this information would be deemed worthy of a “new news!” announcement by the Kelce brothers on their celebrated New Heights podcast. To those in the know, it’s the inevitable déjà vu of the aviation industry. The warning lights have been flashing for years. Retirement numbers have been climbing, training pipelines are thinning, and then we take into account the 2020 pandemic that smacked everyone’s face faster than Monday morning after the Super Bowl.
Everything is sideways. Airlines have parked fleets. Pilots (along with everyone else) are being furloughed. Training is paused across the board. Alas, we have a solution.
In these instances, FlyHire is prepared for when the world decides it’s ready to travel again. If you think about it, pilots aren’t necessarily waiting at the gates after being led-on or ghosted. They are tired of being in limbo, opting for early retirement, and career swapping from the friendly skies to finally buying that vineyard they dreamt about all those years.
While the industry is playing catch up and fighting over who-is-going-to-call-who-and-when, the rest of us are holding our boarding passes and emotional support beers.
Let’s add some facts for the left-brained side of the classroom. According to Boeing, the world will need about 674,000 new pilots by 2042, and roughly 123,000 of those in North America alone. The FAA reported that at the end of 2024, there were about 848,770 active pilot certificates in the U.S., but the pool of experienced airline-ready pilots remains alarmingly shallow. Regionals are taking the hardest hit.
It’s like trying to refill a bathtub while someone forgot to plug the drain.
Every element of the process is to blame. Training costs are (pun intended) sky-high, as a commercial pilot’s license can run well over $100,000 BEFORE you even start earning. According to Time Magazine, entry-level pay for regional airline pilots has historically been low enough to make baristas raise an eyebrow. Then there’s the age factor. The average airline pilot is in their late fifties, and retirement is mandatory at 65. Every month, hundreds of Cockpit Cowboys hang up their wings, with fewer and fewer Runway Rookies to slide past the autopilot and into the hotseat.
Meanwhile, the aviation climate in 2025 is a roller coaster. Passenger demand has rebounded beyond expectations, up nearly four percent in the U.S. alone. According to the IATA, global passenger traffic is expected to hit 5.2 billion this year, yet aircraft production is lagging because of supply chain snags and labor shortages. As airlines chase expansion, flight cancellations and exhausted crews have become the largest side effects of a pilot shortage.
Employers, this is the part where I grab the mic and let you know we ARE encountering turbulence within the job market. Please remain seated with your seatbelts fastened.
The FAA’s most recent emergency order lands like that quiet moment when your CFO admits the numbers are not in the green yet. We get it and understand that airlines are now chasing pilots like colleges chase athletes with NIL contracts. This is where FlyHire comes in.
Old-school hiring strategies won’t cut it anymore. The days of posting a “competitive pay” listing on a job board and waiting for résumés are as nonexistent as the Washington Redskins.
FlyHire solves the industry’s biggest pain point (and Maverick’s need) of SPEED, gives employers a competitive edge in a talent war, eliminates busywork for pilots, modernizes aviation’s outdated infrastructure, and delivers a platform that benefits both sides at once.
The economy will always be as unpredictable as an election result, market crash, or Elon Musk’s next move. What we do know for sure is the state of the aviation industry right now.
The whole topic in general is tense. Very tense. Which is why FlyHire is here to motivate you to follow the old adage of “work smarter, not harder.” Allow us to take this off your plate, so you can do the things you love.
We understand that time is the most precious commodity.
Pilots love to fly, Airlines love to make money, travelers love to discover without hiccups, and FlyHire loves to connect pilots and employers.
Our goal is to make everyone celebrate the glowing horizon.
I will ask this one thing for employers: this is the moment to rethink how you attract talent. Perhaps you are considering your need to be transparent, fast, and offer benefits that actually matter and will keep your staff until retirement, no matter the economy.
For the flyboys still reading this lovely prose- the leverage is yours. The opportunities are here, and FlyHire helps you see them clearly. While it isn’t the way you’re used to handling your employment, it's the next generation of stability- and it works.
Now boarding all rows.
FlyHire’s network spans across the globe, but calls Charleston, SC home.
Katherine S. Von Haden
katie@lacyaviation.com
