The Future of Aviation
A Presentation by the Washington Post, October 18, 2022
Recently the Washington Post interviewed Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, and United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby about the current state and the future of the aviation industry.
You can find a video of the interview and full transcripts on the Washington Post website.
In the first segment, Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, talks about traveling by air this past summer. The flight delays and cancellations.
His thoughts on this suggest that the demand came back more quickly than the airlines were ready to support, and there was not enough preparation for staffing issues and limited resources, leaving the sector unable to respond to the demand. He points out that there will always be some sort of travel disruption, weather alone can affect that, and it’s not unusual for 1-2% of flights to be canceled, especially during the summer. However, what we saw this summer, was more like 4%. This may not sound like a lot, but it’s enough to strongly affect the system and whether or not it can catch up.
“It’s the difference between seeing headlines like ‘business as usual,’ versus words like ‘chaos’ and ‘meltdown.’”
He goes on to explain that the FAA and the airlines chose to work together to determine what could be done differently, and how the FAA could help. He assures us that there have been many improvements since the summer, but the system is still not as resilient as it used to be. Taxpayers contributed significantly to keeping the airlines afloat during 2020, and it helped significantly, but it’s surprising that there are still so many issues. Some of this has to do with pilots taking early retirement and decreased staffing levels. Which is why the FAA advised airlines to reconsider their schedules and to make sure they were more realistic and in line with what they could support.
Is the FAA at all to blame for the delays?
According to Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, the majority of the delays were not the result of air traffic control, but there have been recent restraints on the air traffic control side, largely because there was a disruption from a pipeline fitting, which caused issues in NY and Florida. He assures us they are working hard to establish solutions that will result in operational communications with the airlines on a day-to-day level, and making sure resources are being used effectively.
For example, there has been some enforcement, such as making airlines provide refunds for delays, raising the floor (improving the rules as they stand and making sure they’re tough enough), and using tools such as transparency. The FAA put together a website, called the Airline Customer Service Dashboard, providing a listing of the top ten airlines with a green check or a red x next to basic customer service practices that each airline is committed in writing to do. After doing this, all the airlines committed to improving customer service.
You can find the FAA airline customer service dashboard HERE.
You might also find this list by Up Grade Points, “The Airlines Best and Worst Customer Service,” interesting. You can find it HERE.
The segment by Larry Culp, United Airlines CEO, chairman and CEO of GE, and CEO of GE Aerospace, was also very informative. He was asked to address the challenges of the aviation industry in the past few years. First, the pandemic, then the recovery from the pandemic, labor shortages, high‑energy prices, and the Russia‑Ukraine war. He talks about how the convergence of these challenges in the last few of years has made it the most daunting operating environment he’s ever known. GE Aerospace powers three out of every four commercial departures around the world daily, which means they work very hard with their customers to return to flight. Additionally, their aircraft manufacturer customers are ramping up production at a dramatic rate. Their goal is to enhance the safety and quality of customer service while still improving delivery and productivity performance.
He talks about this being an exciting time for the aerospace industry. For example, United Airlines’ first-ever experimental flight with passengers using 100 percent sustainable aviation fuel, NASA’s hybrid electrics, and updating and advancing traditional propulsion systems. As far as the issues concerning airline travel this past summer, he points out that it was a record-breaking season for United Airlines, they had their best on‑time performance and lowest cancellation rate, partially because they pulled schedules back, and now have 10 percent more pilots per block hour than they had pre‑pandemic. He explains one of the biggest epiphanies the travel industry has seen this past year is a structural change in leisure. People are going to travel more, and the reason is that hybrid work now gives them the flexibility to travel when they didn't have it before.
September, for example, was the third-highest month in the history of United Airlines, and September is typically one of the slower months for travel. Midweek days had an eight‑point improvement in load factor, while the weekend days, although improved, were only up about 3 percent.
A Need for Pilots
It is no secret that there is a shortage of pilots in the aviation industry. United alone is on track to hire 15,000 new employees in 2023. They even started their own flight academy called Aviate.
The future of aviation is stronger than ever. We encourage you to read more about where the industry is going, and to JOIN US!
Begin Your Journey as a Pilot
The Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certificate, needed for flying commercially, is the highest-level pilot certificate you can achieve. It requires you to have a good amount of total flight-time experience, instrument experience, and cross-country time. The ATP Certificate typically requires you to possess a total flight time of 1,500 hours, but lower times can be approved for collegiate programs that offer the “Restricted ATP (R-ATP)” pilot tracks that drop that minimum down to 1,250 hours for associate-level degree programs and 1,000 hours for baccalaureate degree programs. Safety in Motion Flight Center partners with Green River College which is approved for both R-ATP programs, providing flight training.
To learn more and get started on a career in aviation, CONTACT US today!
