Pilots jobs and careers

What an industry! Less than two years ago employers were doing two circuits of the aircrew-available barrel looking for pilots. Now there are wholesale layoffs and retrenchments. Feast or famine!

It must be acknowledged that Australia is in a recession along with the rest of the world. When there is a lack of money in circulation business and holiday travellers cut back on air travel. Less aircraft flying means less aircrew required. That in turn means tough times for a number of aircrew members who less than two years ago were in high demand. In a number of cases aircrew had relocated to be close to their new employment. Now a number are out of a job or at best have had their flight hours and pay drastically cut back. The airlines and charter are most affected. Some airline aircraft are being put out to grass or sold off and the mining fly-in, fly-out program has been drastically cut back. Some aircrew have gone back down the careers ladder into the jobs or type of jobs that they had before they started flying for the airlines. Qantas has announced that it is to cut back by more than a thousand staff including some flight crew. Virgin has also flagged its intent to cut back on staff. Ironically the one area that does not appear to have been affected as yet is the flight training sector, in particular those organisations that are training foreign nationals.