12/30/2023 – 13:19
Delta Air Lines reported that it plans to hire 1,100 pilots in 2024. The number is half the number hired this year and last year, a sign that the hiring wave is starting to slow down.
In a statement to pilots sent this week, Delta stated that the goal is “high” in relation to a normal year. “Remember that in any other year, hiring 1,100 pilots would be considered an incredibly high number,” the company said in the statement seen by The Wall Street Journal.
Delta said its hiring projections represent “continued, healthy and robust” demand for pilots. “What we forecast for next year is a very strong, albeit more normalized, growth pattern following two years of exceptionally strong hiring,” the company said.
Major North American airlines have been hiring pilots at a record pace to keep up with the rapid recovery in travel demand following the Covid-19 pandemic. According to consultancy FAPA.aero, companies hired more than 13 thousand pilots last year and are expected to repeat the same number this year.
Airlines, including Delta, say demand for travel has been holding up, but airline industry growth is starting to slow after more than two years of rapid expansion. That could help alleviate fierce airline competition for pilots and hasten the end of a shortage that has left some planes grounded and some small towns without air service.
Other major airlines have not outlined specific hiring plans for next year, but some analysts say the most acute phase of the pilot shortage appears to be easing as airlines regain hiring momentum. “Higher salaries attract recent graduates. Major airlines are starting to moderate their hiring levels,” Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a report.
Budget airline Spirit Airlines has suspended training for new pilot hires, citing its plans to slow growth next year. Cargo airlines' need for new pilots has also decreased due to the drop in order volumes. All of this will likely ease pressure on regional airlines, which have borne the brunt of an industry-wide pilot shortage as professionals are attracted to the higher salaries of big companies. Source: Dow Jones Newswires.
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