COVID-19: The GA Aftermath

The affect was wide spread in that the GA industry was to suffer much the same. Border restrictions and lockdowns meant that there was an effective shutdown of the tourist market and with that GA charter work. GA pilots became redundant overnight. The hopes and aspirations of pilots also gone. Devastating for social and family life. 

For the airline pilots aged 50-55 there was a reduced possibility of being taken back when the virus ceased. Some pundits say it will take all of three to five years, perhaps longer, to even get back to about 80 per cent of what we saw at the beginning of the year. That in turn means that there are going to be a lot of experienced pilots looking for flying jobs. Some will exit the industry altogether. Some will try and go back down the tree of experience and try for a GA position, be that charter or flight training. Some will flip burgers and stack shelves while hoping for a recall. Both the RFDS and the ADF have noted a large increase in applications for aircrew. Airliners are parked at a number of locations across Australia and overseas. Some to be parted out, some to be stored for years and some to eventually be sold to third world countries. The B747s and A380s have gone. Whatever the case, an experienced pilot in the wait queue should be doing some flying, any flying, to ensure that there is not a huge gap between the last job and the next. Ex airline pilots should just remember to not round out at 50’ if flying GA. 

For airline pilots with thousands of hours wanting to become flight instructors, it will be expensive to become a grade 3 instructor and then find a job, maybe only part time or casual, if there are any students, and then to have to work alongside a grade 3 with say 200 hours. 

“…the airline and GA industry will rebound but it will take time”

GENERAL AVIATION FLYING WILL PICK UP BUT IT WILL TAKE TIME 

For students wanting to learn to fly and become commercial pilots they will be competing with experienced pilots coming back down that tree of experience and have no real prospect of a job at the end of expensive flight training. There is a real prospect of not seeing a ‘pilot wanted’ advert for some years to come. To take a loan or even have one now means that it has to be paid back eventually. Some will exit the industry and still have to pay back that loan. This also is a good time to consider if an aviation orientated tertiary qualification has fewer job prospects than a non-aviation industry tertiary qualification.

For pilots working as instructors or wanting to go back down that tree of experience it might well be that there is reduced flying in the training sector. In part caused by prospective students seeing the lack of prospects of getting a real flying job after obtaining an expensive qualification. 

Even given the requirement to maintain social distancing, some flight schools might ignore that requirement and continue training. Of the bigger schools, once they train their current crop there may well be no more given the restrictions on inbound overseas visitors and prospective student pilots. 

Now having said all that, there is some light at the end of the tunnel. The Qantas cadet school at Wellcamp, Toowoomba West, for example, has recently ordered 24 Diamond training aircraft. Training aircraft need flight instructors. QF has long-term faith. The other aspect is that sooner or later, hopefully sooner, the virus will have subsided or gone; perhaps a vaccination, and then the airlines can pick up the traces and resume domestic and international travel. After that the GA industry can slowly climb back to some normality, provided that there are still training and charter operators around. It will be a long haul but it will happen. The desire to learn to fly and hopefully for a living and to charter aircraft or just fly privately is strong and that is what will bring GA back into the fold. 

Pilots and budding pilots have faith, the airline and GA industry will rebound but it will take time. 

Instructor tip of the month

If making a long-distance flight that requires refuelling, a wise pilot might do well by phoning ahead and checking that fuel is available and how to pay for it. No point in getting to a location and finding out that the refuelling tanker is due next week or that payment has to be made by a company card.