By Raquib Siddiqi
Dhaka : After nearly a four-year drought of job openings during the last decade of the past millennium, the airlines all over the world are now seeing greater numbers of their pilots being poached by competing carriers. This is a sure sign that the long-expected pilot shortage is kicking in and the industry is on the brink of what is predicted to be the biggest surge in pilot hiring in history.
It is a dramatic turnaround. Pilot hiring was severely depressed not long time ago.
The coming years will be the exact opposite, with the longest and largest pilot hiring boom in the history of the industry. The experts are of the opinion that demands for pilots will be so great that the industry could ultimately face a shortage, sparking fierce competition among airlines across the globe vying for candidates qualified to fill their cockpits.
Airlines, struggling in recent years to stay afloat amid a global recession and rising fuel costs, were not focused on cultivating new pilots. Many young people who might have sought a career in aviation a generation ago turned their attention to software companies or other industries, turned off by a field in which opportunities were scarce, benefits were eroding and starting pay at regional carriers was low, some analysts say.
The shortage
The pilot shortage is relatively recent. It is the result of extraordinary air traffic growth in the Gulf, China and India; the rise of lucrative low-cost carriers in Europe and Asia; and the sustained recovery of the US airlines from the industry recession caused by the 9/11 attacks.
"There is a giant sucking sound, luring pilots to rapidly expanding airlines such as Emirates and Qatar and the budget carriers," said William Voss, Head of the Flight Safety Foundation. The result is that experienced pilots from developing countries in Asia and Africa are leaving in droves for places like the Gulf.
Evidence of the exodus of pilots and mechanics from established airlines and national flag carriers abounds.
Similar to other countries, Bangladesh is also feeling the heat of pilot and technician shortage and the heat will be more intense with the increase in demand along with growth of the industry. If immediate action in updating and expanding existing training facilities in the country is not taken, the airline industry of the country will be in serious trouble. On the other hand, appropriate action will help Bangladesh not only meet its own demand, but also can export pilots and technicians to other countries.
Boeing's prediction
The evidence of the looming global need is there for all to see. The current firm order backlog for the global airline industry stands at well over 7,500 aircraft.
The 2011 version of Boeing's annually updated analysis of the airline industry's growing needs for skilled personnel such as pilots and technicians over the next 20 years predicted that need for new pilots has risen to 459,600 from 446,500 predicted in 2010. Boeing's prediction for the number of fully trained technicians airlines will need has climbed from 596,500 to 650,000.
The average annual training need to meet that demand is 23,000 new pilots and 32,000 new technicians.
In the 2011-2030 period, according to Boeing's new figures, by far the biggest demand will come from Asia, because that is where the economic growth is.
Asia-Pacific pilot demand is predicted to be 40 per cent of the total, whereas in the 1970s it was 2 per cent. Comparative needs in North America and Europe respectively are 18 per cent and 20 per cent and a far higher proportion of those figures is for replacements rather than the additional needs generated by growth. The regional share of demand figures is almost the same for technicians.
IATA warning
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is warning the world s airlines of a severe pilot shortage unless industry and government work together to change training and qualification practices.
IATA issued a new estimate that the industry may need 17,000 new pilots annually due to expected industry growth and retirements. "Increasing the retirement age to 65 will help but it can't be the only solution. It's time to ring the warning bell. We must re-think pilot training and qualification to further improve safety and increase training capacity, said Giovanni Bisignani.
Opportunity for Bangladesh
Traditionally, new pilots come up through flight training academies with a strict regimen of ground school and 50-60 hours flying for a Private Pilots License, then 250 hours plus a battery of tests for a Commer-cial Pilots License, which includes instrument and multi-engine ratings. A total of 1,500 hours of flight are required for a license that would qualify a pilot for the support seat.
Pilot training has not changed in 60 years- with an emphasis on flight hours. Although all airline pilots are trained to the same standards, there are certain intangibles that only come from experience, skill and a solid familiarity with airline operations.
The increasing need for pilots is good news for training institutions around the world including Bangladesh. Flying clubs must be well equipped to attract qualified and smart people into the industry.
But facilities at the training institutions in the country at present are antiquated. A grand overhaul of the system with modernisation and expansion is urgently needed to answer the demand of the time. The technological developments going on in aviation are now as robust as that in some of the software fields. So part of it is reminding people of that and trying to attract them back to aviation.
What we just need to do is open up the mouth of the pipeline even wider, attract more people, get them into the programmes and trained. This is really where the government has a major stake.
BD facilities
Bangladesh Flying Academy and General Aviation Limited (BFA) is the only organisation producing Commercial Pilots for the airlines of the country since its inception in 1948. BFA has produced more than 95 per cent Pilots flying for Biman, the national airlines 25 pilots who have graduated from the BFA are now flying in Emirates, Qatar, Etihad and Saudi Arabi-an Airlines. It is a non commercial and non-profit organisation.
Recently two private Flying Schools_ Galaxy and Arirang_ have started their operation, but are yet to produce commercial pilots.
Considering aviation boom in Bangladesh, the BFA estimates that in the very near future, Bangladesh itself would require around 200 Pilots. But with the present resources available the Flying Academy can, at the most, produce only 8 pilots every year.
Due to shortage of training aircraft and instructor BFA is unable to produce enough pilots to meet the ever increasing demand.
BFA has only 4 four very old aircrafts. Three of which are owned by the government.
Govt. owned aircraft are: (1) S2-AAY (Cessna- l82/F), manufactured in 1963. (2) S2- ABB (Cessna- 150/G), manufactured in 1967 and (3) S2- ACN (PA-38-112), manufactured in 1982.
BFA owned Aircraft is a S2- ABI (Cessna-152), manufactured in 1983.
BFA expansion plan
It may be noted that BFA is not run commercially, it is non-profit organisation. So, it has to depend on the subsidy given by the government through Civil Aviation Authority of Bangla-desh (CAAB) About Tk.18 to 20 lakh are required to produce one commercial pilot, compared to Tk. 30 lakh or more charged by the two private flying schools.
Since costs of the private flying schools are exorbitant, students from middle class families cannot afford to enroll there. Their only hope is the BFA.
With a view to keeping the cost of training a commercial pilot within the reach of meritorious students- from middle class background the amount of subsidy should be increased so as to keep the cost at Tk 15 lakh level.
Since commercial flying is a highly skilled job, it is highly paid too. If we can send about 200 pilots to other countries, the country can earned around Tk 100 crore annually through their remittance. This will also greatly enhance the image of Bangladesh.
In order to meet the ever-increasing demands of pilots-both for domestic demand and exports- the BFA has to be modernised and upgraded to make it a full academy of international standard. To achieve this target, the present management of BFA has prepared an expansion plan and submitted to the government in June.
The expansion and up gradation plan includes :
- Construction of an administration building having rooms for staff, board room, crew room for students, classrooms, a cafeteria and construction of a maintenance hangar at a approximate cost of about Tk. 2 crore.
- Purchase of two to three used aircraft for training, at a cost of about Tk. 1.5 crore.
- Procurement of a digital simulator (synthetic device) to train on instrument flying and to minimise cost of training, at a cost of about Taka 1 crore.
- Increase of subsidy to around Tk 2.00 crore for flying and maintenance, hiring of four instructors and some maintenance engineers.
BFA also requested the government to gift the land where BFA now stands.
The planned expansion and up-gradation of BFA will be needed an amount of around Taka 7 crore_not at all a large sum. The management of the academy said that if this amount is given as grant to BFA it can be modernised and upgraded to an international standard flying school (similar to the Maritime University, Chittagong). The upgrade BFA will surely attract foreign students, because of cheaper cost of flying in Bangladesh.
New training
IATA says it supports the competency-based approach of multi-crew pilot licensing (MPL) training programmes. Unlike traditional pilot training, MPL focuses from the beginning on training for multi-pilot cockpit working conditions. It also makes better use of simulator technology. Europe was among the first regions to adopt MPL and Australia and China are moving ahead with implementation.
IATA has launched the IATA Training and Qualification Initia-tive (ITQI) to support a global approach to MPL implementation. "Our goal is to increase the pool of candidates and training capacity while improving standards," said Bisignani.
According to the latest available figures, there are 1.2 million pilots worldwide. But most hold private or commercial licenses while just 14 per cent have the professional Airline Transport Pilots License that allows holders to fly for airlines.
In an effort to retain experienced pilots, aviation authorities in some nations - including the United States - are considering extending the mandatory retirement age from 60 to 65 years.
It makes no sense to force expe-rienced, qualified and healthy pilots to retire while airlines are scrambling to fill those seats.
by Monir Bangladesh
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Pilot shortage seems to be hitting global airline industry : Bangladesh must seize the opportunity
By Raquib Siddiqi
Dhaka : After nearly a four-year drought of job openings during the last decade of the past millennium, the airlines all over the world are now seeing greater numbers of their pilots being poached by competing carriers. This is a sure sign that the long-expected pilot shortage is kicking in and the industry is on the brink of what is predicted to be the biggest surge in pilot hiring in history.
It is a dramatic turnaround. Pilot hiring was severely depressed not long time ago.
The coming years will be the exact opposite, with the longest and largest pilot hiring boom in the history of the industry. The experts are of the opinion that demands for pilots will be so great that the industry could ultimately face a shortage, sparking fierce competition among airlines across the globe vying for candidates qualified to fill their cockpits.
Airlines, struggling in recent years to stay afloat amid a global recession and rising fuel costs, were not focused on cultivating new pilots. Many young people who might have sought a career in aviation a generation ago turned their attention to software companies or other industries, turned off by a field in which opportunities were scarce, benefits were eroding and starting pay at regional carriers was low, some analysts say.
The shortage
The pilot shortage is relatively recent. It is the result of extraordinary air traffic growth in the Gulf, China and India; the rise of lucrative low-cost carriers in Europe and Asia; and the sustained recovery of the US airlines from the industry recession caused by the 9/11 attacks.
"There is a giant sucking sound, luring pilots to rapidly expanding airlines such as Emirates and Qatar and the budget carriers," said William Voss, Head of the Flight Safety Foundation. The result is that experienced pilots from developing countries in Asia and Africa are leaving in droves for places like the Gulf.
Evidence of the exodus of pilots and mechanics from established airlines and national flag carriers abounds.
Similar to other countries, Bangladesh is also feeling the heat of pilot and technician shortage and the heat will be more intense with the increase in demand along with growth of the industry. If immediate action in updating and expanding existing training facilities in the country is not taken, the airline industry of the country will be in serious trouble. On the other hand, appropriate action will help Bangladesh not only meet its own demand, but also can export pilots and technicians to other countries.
Boeing's prediction
The evidence of the looming global need is there for all to see. The current firm order backlog for the global airline industry stands at well over 7,500 aircraft.
The 2011 version of Boeing's annually updated analysis of the airline industry's growing needs for skilled personnel such as pilots and technicians over the next 20 years predicted that need for new pilots has risen to 459,600 from 446,500 predicted in 2010. Boeing's prediction for the number of fully trained technicians airlines will need has climbed from 596,500 to 650,000.
The average annual training need to meet that demand is 23,000 new pilots and 32,000 new technicians.
In the 2011-2030 period, according to Boeing's new figures, by far the biggest demand will come from Asia, because that is where the economic growth is.
Asia-Pacific pilot demand is predicted to be 40 per cent of the total, whereas in the 1970s it was 2 per cent. Comparative needs in North America and Europe respectively are 18 per cent and 20 per cent and a far higher proportion of those figures is for replacements rather than the additional needs generated by growth. The regional share of demand figures is almost the same for technicians.
IATA warning
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is warning the world s airlines of a severe pilot shortage unless industry and government work together to change training and qualification practices.
IATA issued a new estimate that the industry may need 17,000 new pilots annually due to expected industry growth and retirements. "Increasing the retirement age to 65 will help but it can't be the only solution. It's time to ring the warning bell. We must re-think pilot training and qualification to further improve safety and increase training capacity, said Giovanni Bisignani.
Opportunity for Bangladesh
Traditionally, new pilots come up through flight training academies with a strict regimen of ground school and 50-60 hours flying for a Private Pilots License, then 250 hours plus a battery of tests for a Commer-cial Pilots License, which includes instrument and multi-engine ratings. A total of 1,500 hours of flight are required for a license that would qualify a pilot for the support seat.
Pilot training has not changed in 60 years- with an emphasis on flight hours. Although all airline pilots are trained to the same standards, there are certain intangibles that only come from experience, skill and a solid familiarity with airline operations.
The increasing need for pilots is good news for training institutions around the world including Bangladesh. Flying clubs must be well equipped to attract qualified and smart people into the industry.
But facilities at the training institutions in the country at present are antiquated. A grand overhaul of the system with modernisation and expansion is urgently needed to answer the demand of the time. The technological developments going on in aviation are now as robust as that in some of the software fields. So part of it is reminding people of that and trying to attract them back to aviation.
What we just need to do is open up the mouth of the pipeline even wider, attract more people, get them into the programmes and trained. This is really where the government has a major stake.
BD facilities
Bangladesh Flying Academy and General Aviation Limited (BFA) is the only organisation producing Commercial Pilots for the airlines of the country since its inception in 1948. BFA has produced more than 95 per cent Pilots flying for Biman, the national airlines 25 pilots who have graduated from the BFA are now flying in Emirates, Qatar, Etihad and Saudi Arabi-an Airlines. It is a non commercial and non-profit organisation.
Recently two private Flying Schools_ Galaxy and Arirang_ have started their operation, but are yet to produce commercial pilots.
Considering aviation boom in Bangladesh, the BFA estimates that in the very near future, Bangladesh itself would require around 200 Pilots. But with the present resources available the Flying Academy can, at the most, produce only 8 pilots every year.
Due to shortage of training aircraft and instructor BFA is unable to produce enough pilots to meet the ever increasing demand.
BFA has only 4 four very old aircrafts. Three of which are owned by the government.
Govt. owned aircraft are: (1) S2-AAY (Cessna- l82/F), manufactured in 1963. (2) S2- ABB (Cessna- 150/G), manufactured in 1967 and (3) S2- ACN (PA-38-112), manufactured in 1982.
BFA owned Aircraft is a S2- ABI (Cessna-152), manufactured in 1983.
BFA expansion plan
It may be noted that BFA is not run commercially, it is non-profit organisation. So, it has to depend on the subsidy given by the government through Civil Aviation Authority of Bangla-desh (CAAB) About Tk.18 to 20 lakh are required to produce one commercial pilot, compared to Tk. 30 lakh or more charged by the two private flying schools.
Since costs of the private flying schools are exorbitant, students from middle class families cannot afford to enroll there. Their only hope is the BFA.
With a view to keeping the cost of training a commercial pilot within the reach of meritorious students- from middle class background the amount of subsidy should be increased so as to keep the cost at Tk 15 lakh level.
Since commercial flying is a highly skilled job, it is highly paid too. If we can send about 200 pilots to other countries, the country can earned around Tk 100 crore annually through their remittance. This will also greatly enhance the image of Bangladesh.
In order to meet the ever-increasing demands of pilots-both for domestic demand and exports- the BFA has to be modernised and upgraded to make it a full academy of international standard. To achieve this target, the present management of BFA has prepared an expansion plan and submitted to the government in June.
The expansion and up gradation plan includes :
- Construction of an administration building having rooms for staff, board room, crew room for students, classrooms, a cafeteria and construction of a maintenance hangar at a approximate cost of about Tk. 2 crore.
- Purchase of two to three used aircraft for training, at a cost of about Tk. 1.5 crore.
- Procurement of a digital simulator (synthetic device) to train on instrument flying and to minimise cost of training, at a cost of about Taka 1 crore.
- Increase of subsidy to around Tk 2.00 crore for flying and maintenance, hiring of four instructors and some maintenance engineers.
BFA also requested the government to gift the land where BFA now stands.
The planned expansion and up-gradation of BFA will be needed an amount of around Taka 7 crore_not at all a large sum. The management of the academy said that if this amount is given as grant to BFA it can be modernised and upgraded to an international standard flying school (similar to the Maritime University, Chittagong). The upgrade BFA will surely attract foreign students, because of cheaper cost of flying in Bangladesh.
New training
IATA says it supports the competency-based approach of multi-crew pilot licensing (MPL) training programmes. Unlike traditional pilot training, MPL focuses from the beginning on training for multi-pilot cockpit working conditions. It also makes better use of simulator technology. Europe was among the first regions to adopt MPL and Australia and China are moving ahead with implementation.
IATA has launched the IATA Training and Qualification Initia-tive (ITQI) to support a global approach to MPL implementation. "Our goal is to increase the pool of candidates and training capacity while improving standards," said Bisignani.
According to the latest available figures, there are 1.2 million pilots worldwide. But most hold private or commercial licenses while just 14 per cent have the professional Airline Transport Pilots License that allows holders to fly for airlines.
In an effort to retain experienced pilots, aviation authorities in some nations - including the United States - are considering extending the mandatory retirement age from 60 to 65 years.
It makes no sense to force expe-rienced, qualified and healthy pilots to retire while airlines are scrambling to fill those seats.
by Monir Bangladesh
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