Many people want to become pilots, while there is little room at airlines for new pilots. As a result of the credit crisis, significantly fewer holidays are still being booked. Many pilots therefore get into financial problems because they have paid a lot of money for training at one of the flying schools in our country. The romantic haze, such as a high salary, that surrounded the profession of pilot is quickly disappearing. Many boys dream of becoming a pilot. A pilot is also known as a co-pilot or captain. That dream seems to be available to fewer and fewer of them. This is because the number of flights has decreased significantly due to the economic crisis. Fewer people go on holiday and when people do go on holiday, they often choose a destination closer to home. As a result, airlines hire few new people. At the same time, a thousand graduated pilots enter the labor market every year. The competition is therefore fierce. For the time being, there seems little hope for the many young pilots. Even if the economy improves, competition is so fierce for the time being that it will take a long time before they have a job.
Working as a pilot
There are various requirements for a pilot. For example, someone must be at least seventeen years old before he or she can earn money from training to become a commercial pilot. A person is also not allowed to have lenses or glasses. The maximum age at which someone is usually hired is usually around 32 years old. This may differ per company. For some the age will be slightly lower, for others higher. Furthermore, a person must have obtained at least a HAVO diploma and be proficient in English. It is also usually asked that someone had mathematics and physics included in the package. Furthermore, the various flying schools and companies conduct a standard medical and psychological examination. On this basis they determine whether someone is suitable for the profession of pilot.
Pilot training
In the Netherlands there are several private vocational aviation schools where people can be trained as pilots. The best known are the KLM Flight Academy (KLS), CAE-NLS (National Aviation School), Dutch Flight Academy (DFA) and Stella Aviation Academy. Most courses last approximately two years. There are also three courses at government-funded colleges where students can obtain a pilot’s license. These are Aviation at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Aviation Technology at the Inholland University of Applied Sciences and Industrial Engineering and Management at the Hanze University of Applied Sciences Groningen. The costs for a course can amount to one hundred thousand euros and must be paid by the student himself. The idea was always that a student would earn that money back, but many get into trouble because they cannot find work. It is also important to make many flying hours. Only with approximately 2,500 hours is there a good chance of being hired by companies such as Easyjet, KLM or Lufthansa. A person completes approximately 150 hours of training.
Salary of a pilot
There has always been a romantic aura surrounding the profession of an aviator. Long journeys, beautiful flight attendants, good earnings and early retirement. The beautiful flight attendants may still be there, but the rest are under pressure. As a result of the economic crisis, airlines have made significant cuts. Then the salaries of pilots are a nice item to tackle. Pilots at budget airlines such as EasyJet and Ryan Air, for example, already earn a lot less than their colleagues at British Airways or Air France. Stricter employment conditions are also imposed, such as less time between flights. Aviators usually agree to the terms, mainly because they have little choice. The alternative is not having a job.