Washington, DC (RI) — As the nation faces a worsening shortage of airline pilots, Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says he has some ideas about how to solve the problem, though he’s still undecided about a proposal that would allow for a single pilot to fly commercial jets.
Under FAA guidelines, commercial airline pilots in the US face a mandatory retirement age of 65, though Grassley says just raising the age may not be sufficient to reverse the trend.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been sent separate letters from 45 US senators and more than 150 House members urging him to oppose the single-pilot proposal. One of the letters warns: “The presence of two rested, well-trained and qualified pilots on the flight deck remains a key pillar of aviation safety.”
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst signed the Senate letter, but Grassley did not. In part, Grassley says there may’ve been a miscommunication, in addition to his being undecided on the issue.
Among Iowa’s four House members, only Republican Ashley Hinson of Marion signed the letter from that chamber. It’s not just a domestic pilot shortage, as a report from Boeing projects 674 thousand pilots will be needed worldwide over the next 20 years to meet a growing demand for air travel, with 123 thousand of those pilots just in North America.
