For Once, Someone Names The Cause of Dwindling First Officer Numbers
Mesa Air Group CEO Jonathan Ornstein argued before lawmakers earlier this month that the knee-jerk imposition of the 1,500 flight hour requirement for airline pilots has put the country on the back foot compared to others, specifically laying out the tremendous difference in experience demanded of pilots overseas. “It seems crazy that a 300-hour FO can land a Lufthansa A350 into JFK flying over Queens, and a U.S. pilot can’t do the same thing,” Ornstein said, naming the minimum time European pilots need to fly for carriers. “No other country in the world has adopted this, not a single one.”
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