“The issue is not easier,” Chaifetz said when asked about pilot staffing as a 135 operator. Many have not faced the same issues hiring and retaining pilots as their 121 competitors. The ranks of 135-certified airlines include Cape Air, private-like JSX - that counts JetBlue Airways and Qatar Airways among investors - and Southern Airways Express. She estimated that there are enough overall pilots to meet this demand but that captains, which require more hours - regardless of a 135 or 121 certification - than entry-level crew members, were a constraint for regional airlines. airlines are likely to hire around 12,000 new pilots this year, and another roughly 8,000 in 2023, according to a recent report by Raymond James analyst Savanthi Syth. And a third, as proposed by Senator Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) in July and first reported by Airline Weekly in May, would be to raise the mandatory retirement age by two years to 67. Some argue that this approach effectively robs Peter to pay Paul because the overall supply does not change. Another is to raise entry-level pilot pay to attract crews American has taken this path with its affiliates. That approach, however, takes years to produce new, certified cockpit crew members. One method, taken by Alaska Airlines and United, is to start a flight school and provide financial aid to attract more people to the profession. A downside is that the former can only fly planes with up to 30 seats, and it cannot operate as an “express” airline under a contract with, for example, Delta Air Lines or United.Ĭhanging the operating model is not the only answer to the pilot shortage. While the difference between the two is largely indiscernible for passengers, the rules around pilots differ in several key ways: one, first officers at 135 airlines only need at least 250 hours of training as opposed to 1,500 hours at 121 carriers, and there is no mandatory retirement age. Federal Aviation Administration defines as “Part 135” public air charter airline, rather than “Part 121” regularly scheduled air carrier that includes everyone from SkyWest currently to American. What Contour does is fly under what the U.S. “The world’s largest regional airline sees merit in what we’re doing, I welcome the competition and will also take the moment to relish that we have been doing something right.” “It’s SkyWest mimicking our operating structure exactly,” Contour Airlines CEO Matt Chaifetz said. It hopes the move, which would complement its core business flying planes for major carriers like American Airlines and United Airlines, would expand its supply of pilots - particularly captains - and allow it to continue flying to at least 20 smaller cities across the U.S. SkyWest Airlines’ proposal for a new operating subsidiary, SkyWest Charter, would imitate a model that has proven successful for many others. regional airline sector as it looks to combat a pilot shortage that threatens air service to small communities across the country. They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery.

Contour airlines as public charter