The aviation industry may have a major crisis on its hands, as the number of pilots needed to fly commercial airliners is dwindling.
Between 2017 and 2036, about 640,000 new pilots will be needed to fly commercial airplanes worldwide, according to data released by Boeing Opens a New Window. (BA) in late July.
Though most new pilots will be needed in the Asia Pacific region (253,000), North America alone will require 117,000 to operate the controls of airliners, according to the statistics. Additionally, Boeing also said both passenger and cargo air carriers will purchase more than 41,000 new aircraft, valued at $6.1 trillion.
As the demand for pilots grows, so does the retirement rate among current aviators operating commercial aircraft. For years, the retirement age was capped at 60 years old. That changed in 2007, when the "Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act Opens a New Window. " green-lighted airline pilots to fly until age 65.
"That created a short-term solution to the pilot shortage that was kind of pending," Glenn Nevola, a captain at a major U.S. airline, told FOX Business. "And now, a lot of those guys have reached age 65 and will continue to do so over the next decade."
Nevola"™s airline alone will see more than 800 pilots reach the mandatory retirement age in about two to three years, which will create a staffing issue, he said…
