What Can New Pilots Make? Near Minimum Wage
Low Pay at Regional Airlines Fuels Shortage of Aviators; Republic Airways to Idle 27 Planes
By Jack Nicas and Susan Carey
February 12, 2014 10:14 AM
The news, which followed service disruptions at other airlines, sent Republic's shares down 4.1% to finish at $9.45.
Starting pilot salaries at 14 U.S. regional carriers average $22,400 a year, according to the largest U.S. pilots union. Some smaller carriers pay as little as $15,000 a year. The latter is about what a full-time worker would earn annually at the $7.25-an-hour federal minimum wage.
Regional carriers are a key link in the U.S. air-travel system. Big airlines, whose pilot salaries are much higher, outsource about half of their domestic flights to these smaller partners to save money.
The big carriers set flight schedules and fares, sell the tickets and buy the fuel, leaving their regional counterparts little room to raise wages.
That structure has prevailed for years, but federal rules implemented in August have brought matters to a head by increasing the minimum flight experience required for most commercial-airline pilots to 1,500 hours from 250 hours. The new law has sharply increased the time and expense required to become a commercial pilot, rendering today's starting wages even less attractive and crimping the already-tight supply of would-be aviators.
Andrew Finne, a 23-year-old senior at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Ark., says he has amassed $100,000 in debt to get a four-year aviation degree and 380 hours of flight time. Under the new federal training requirements, he still has two to three years as a flight instructor ahead before he can start flying commercial passengers. He says he hopes he can afford the additional cost, but "I've had several friends drop out because it's too expensive and the outlook for recouping those funds didn't look good."
Some
industry watchers say the two-tier pay structure isn't sustainable.
Even before the current pilot shortage, many regional carriers were
struggling. Several have filed for bankruptcy protection in recent
years. The big airlines also have pressured the regionals to shell out
for larger jets that are more fuel efficient than the 50-seat jetliners
that have long been standard.
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