JetBlue Airways Corp. has devised a new, in-house pilot-training
program for students who have no previous flying experience,
seeking to demonstrate to regulators that novices can attain
proficiency more quickly than current rules allow, according to
people familiar with the details.
From the start, the trial program would focus more than current
ones on simulator training, emergency decision-making and
coordinating crews in complex jetliners, rather than emphasizing
routine flying time in simpler planes. Most airline pilots in the
U.S. currently are required to log at least 1,500 hours at the
controls of smaller aircraft before getting a commercial
license.
The fledgling aviators in the JetBlue program still would have
to meet this requirement, but by assessing students at various
intervals short of 1,500 hours, the airline seeks to show that its
curriculum can produce outstanding pilots who have spent fewer
hours in actual aircraft, the people said.
Some airlines, flight schools and other critics have said the
1,500-hour requirement is so lengthy and expensive that it can
deter high-quality prospective fliers, raising the risk of a
nationwide pilot shortage as more veterans retire.
JetBlue's move is the most dramatic industry response yet to
find alternate ways to recruit and train new hires. While complying
with all Federal Aviation Administration requirements, the people
familiar with the details said, the airline hopes the initiative
will serve as a catalyst for ultimately cutting the 1,500-hour
requirement.
JetBlue spokesman Doug McGraw disputed that the carrier
advocates changes to the current regulations. He said the trial
program—expected to include about two dozen participants—is
intended to build "the complex skills required of airline pilots
from the first day."
The carrier has enough applicants for the time being, Mr. McGraw
said, but the goal is "to ensure the quality of our current cadre
of pilots is maintained," and that JetBlue continues attracting
"the best pilots in the industry well into the future."
Before they could slide behind the controls of a JetBlue plane,
every student would have "meet the full slate of requirements"
spelled out by the FAA, Mr. McGraw said. In addition, once they
start flying regular routes, graduates initially will face
more-rigorous supervision than typical JetBlue pilots.
If regulators approve the trial program, JetBlue would become
the only U.S. carrier to offer some applicants a training concept
widely used around the globe that guarantees airline jobs for
fledgling aviators. American pilots typically now gain experience
at aviation schools or in the military, and then seek jobs at
airlines. Complete in-house training programs at airlines haven't
been seen in the U.S. since the Vietnam War, which led to a severe
commercial-pilot shortage.
Student pilots will have to pay for their training just as
others do now, but the entire program will be run by JetBlue, with
the carrier making a hiring commitment at the outset, contingent on
students meeting all training standards.
Pending regulatory approval of the program, the initial batch of
students could start by next summer. It is projected to take at
least four years to complete the training. The training initiative
was reported earlier by Bloomberg News.
Since the company started envisioning the curriculum months ago,
according to the people familiar with the details, supporters
inside JetBlue were focused on using the program to gather data to
buttress arguments for reducing the FAA's current experience
mandate.
FAA officials overseeing training programs have declined to
comment.
JetBlue's approach, however, already is generating controversy
inside and outside the company, the people familiar with the
details said, especially from pilot-union leaders who see it as a
tactic to try to undermine the established experience level, which
was mandated by Congress.
According to a spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association,
North America's largest pilot union, JetBlue's plan "is not an
effective way to secure qualified aviators." In a letter to
members, leaders of the local union chapter blasted the move as a
way to avoid "dealing with the need to improve rates of pay, rules
and working conditions."
On the other hand, critics of the 1,500-hour rule say it has
made pilot training too long and expensive for many candidates.
Combined with low salaries and airline bankruptcies, training
requirements have "turned off an entire generation of prospective
pilots from joining the industry," said consultant Roger Cohen, a
former president of the Regional Airline Association.
Germany's Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Canada's CAE Inc., a major
simulator and training provider, have been in discussions about
participating in the program, according to one person familiar with
the details. The JetBlue spokesman said "we have not finalized all
of our partner agreements." A Lufthansa spokesperson couldn't be
reached immediately. A spokeswoman for CAE, which supports
JetBlue's training facility in Orlando, Fla., declined to
comment.
JetBlue's plan comes amid continuing debate over loosening the
flight-hour requirement, which was put in place in the wake of the
Colgan Air turboprop crash near Buffalo, N.Y., six years ago.
An industry-and-labor advisory group, tasked to review the issue
for the FAA, isn't expected to call for significant reduction in
experience levels for most new airline pilots, according to one of
the group's members. The panel is likely to end up recommending
marginal reduction in-flight hours, but primarily for ex-military
fliers and graduates of four-year academic aviation programs, this
person said.
Write to Andy Pasztor at andy.pasztor@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 26, 2015 21:35 ET (02:35 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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