WITH the aviation industry in a recession, hundreds of young men who spent millions of rupees to undergo courses to become commercial pilots are unemployed and broke.

A course culminating in a commercial pilot’s licence (CPL) could cost up to Rs4m to 5m in flying schools in Pakistan and abroad. About 7,000 pilots are without jobs as airlines are facing increased fuel costs, and fewer customers have shed aircraft and routes, and more importantly staff, including pilots.

That has turned many aspiring pilots to dust, landing them in a debt trap, with many landed with huge loans from banks. To get a CPL, aspirants have to put in 250 hours of flying and class hours in a process that can stretch to three years, if not more.

While the basic training would cost over Rs4m, conversion training on larger aircraft like Boeing would cost another Rs2m or more.

Interest in flying schools was sparked off by the boom in the aviation industry in 2003 onwards when new airlines came up, raising the requirements for pilots. However, in 2007, oil prices went up, and the situation was compounded by recession.

One of the CPL holders says that he got trained in America, spending nearly Rs7m. But most airlines want experienced pilots with at least a year’s experience.

According to a retired PIA pilot, about 7,000 pilots, who have commercial flying licences, are unemployed. Many young pilots from middle class families have taken huge loans for their training and are unable to repay.

Many pilots have taken up other jobs, and some have started their own businesses, while the Civil Aviation Authority is not doing anything about it.

Another pilot with a local private airline says any new airline would prefer experienced pilots. One new airline has just recruited about 60 to 80 pilots from the airline he belonged to. It is a bad phase for the newcomers, and it might take another two years for things to settle down.

I request the CAA to help the new pilots get jobs in airlines.

Asim Illahi Shaikh

Sukkur

Published in Dawn, July 17th, 2014