Boeing releases Pilot & Technician Outlook

The 2019 Boeing Pilot & Technician Outlook projects that804,000 new civil aviation pilots, 769,000 new maintenance technicians, and914,000 new cabin crew will be needed to fly and maintain the world fleet overthe next 20 years. The forecast is inclusive of the commercial aviation,business aviation, and civil helicopter industries.

The demand will stem from a mix of fleet growth,retirements, and attrition. Meeting this strong demand will require acollective effort from across the global aviation industry. As several hundredthousand pilots and technicians reach retirement age over the next decade,educational outreach and career pathway programs will be essential to inspiringand recruiting the next generation of personnel.

The aviation industry will need to adopt innovative trainingsolutions to enable optimum learning and knowledge retention. Immersivetechnologies, adaptive learning, schedule flexibility, and new teaching methodswill be needed to effectively meet a wide range of learning styles. The growingdiversity and mobility of aviation personnel will also require instructors tohave cross-cultural, cross-generational, and multilingual skills to engage withtomorrow's workforce.

As pilot labor supply remains constrained, airlines areincreasingly seeking to recruit, develop, and train locally sourced pilots.Cadet programs that train aspiring pilots to be a qualified, competent, andoperationally-ready first officer have increased in popularity as airlines lookto fill future pilot pipelines. Airlines are also recognizing the significantcost burden for students, and bond programs have gained traction as anotheravenue for interested candidates.

An advantage of today's data-rich environment is the abilityto assess knowledge gaps as they occur, enabling training solutions thatproduce more competent and qualified pilots. With the wealth of historical dataavailable, evidence and competency-based training programs are increasingly beingadopted to change how pilots are trained and assessed. Instruction is evolvingto train pilots to proficiencies and competencies, rather than a standardsyllabus. The goal is to ensure pilots are effectively trained on procedures toaddress today's most common operational risks and assessed based on key skillsand competencies that all pilots should possess.

Over the next 20 years, the Asia Pacific region will leadthe worldwide growth in demand for pilots, with a requirement for 266,000 newpilots. North America will require 212,000, Europe 148,000, the Middle East68,000, Latin America 54,000, Africa 29,000 and Russia / Central Asia 27,000

As new generation airplanes become more prominent in theglobal fleet, advances in airplane technology will drive demand for a new setof skills, such as digital troubleshooting and composites repair. Concurrently,operators and MROs will be challenged to ensure technicians continue tomaintain the skills and capability necessary to service the large fleet of oldergeneration aircraft. These two skill sets often differ, creating opportunitiesfor the industry to enhance its standard training curriculum.

Mobile and distance learning solutions are supplementingtraditional classroom instruction and allow students to continue their studiesoutside of traditional instructor-led classes. New technologies, such asaugmented and mixed reality solutions, are also being tested as a way toimprove student engagement, quality of instruction, and knowledge retention.Competency-based maintenance training continues to evolve as the industryfocuses on addressing individual students' needs and knowledge gaps.

The need for maintenance personnel is largest in the AsiaPacific region, which will require 266,000 new technicians. Airlines in NorthAmerica will require 193,000, Europe 137,000, the Middle East 69,000, LatinAmerica 52,000, Africa 27,000, and Russia/Central Asia 25,000.