Although the pilot shortage has mainly manifested in regional flight cancellations in the U.S., the largest Persian Gulf carrier, Emirates, is reportedly ready to park 18 percent of its fleet. Airline Geeks says Emirates will also reduce pilot staffing on long-haul flights and that its deployment of pilots might be part of the reason it’s having trouble attracting them. The website says the airline will idle 36 Boeing 777s and 10 A380s by July and it’s cut the frequency of flights to some destinations and eliminated flights to others.
The site reports Emirates pilots are well paid but Chinese airlines are offering signing bonuses of up to $300,000 and allowing pilots to commute to work from anywhere in the world. Working conditions at Emirates are also part of the problem. Emirates pilots work 90 hours a month and the crew rest requirements of its aviation regulators in the United Arab Emirates are more lax than in most countries. That means the airline will be able to start staffing 12-hour and longer flights with three pilots instead of four. Plans are to operate three-pilot crews to Rio de Janeiro, Boston, Sydney, Sao Paulo, New York and Melbourne starting July 1. Pilots also reportedly don’t like the work schedule. Most flights leave between midnight and 4 a.m., meaning their circadian rhythms are frequently out of whack.
