Flight Operations Pilot

PHOTO: Matt Nicholls

There are many career options for licensed commercial pilots in Canada outside the high-profile flying for one of Canada’s national or regional airlines. Transport Canada estimates there are more than 800 on-demand aviation service providers such as charter operators, which is a less routine career than scheduled flying and often involves being able to fly on short notice. There are also a variety of specialty services in law enforcement and medical emergency.

“Students first of all need to determine what they want as their final career position,” says Wayne Cave, director of flight operations for Vancouver-based Coastal Pacific Aviation. “They may love the outdoors and have no aspirations other than to be a floatplane pilot along Canada’s coastal areas, or up north.”

Aviation is the only source of year-round access for many northern communities. As Canada’s resource-rich north continues to develop, northern-based passenger and freight carriers will be aggressively recruiting greater numbers of pilots.

There is also good news for licensed pilots drawn to a career with one of Canada’s national airlines. “We are seeing renewed and accelerated hiring by major airlines, which is having the effect of increased opportunities for all pilots in the commercial sector,” Cave points out. It is estimated that Air Canada is hiring up to 20 new pilots a month to keep pace with older pilots heading for the exits by retirement rules, although this will not have much of an impact on young students entering or just coming out of flight school.

Larger airlines such as Air Canada, WestJet and Air Transat tend to hire pilots who have built up flying time over several years. It is not uncommon for a recruit to have clocked more than 500 hours flying heavy jets. Airlines are also placing a higher emphasis on the so-called “soft skills” such as leadership and communication.

And it’s not just airlines, says Barone, president/CEO of the CBAA. “Sometimes candidates have the right technical skills but not the right attitude. Our pilots are often flying principals of large corporations, which takes a different set of skills.”

According to Barone, the requirement to fly corporate jets is often equivalent to and sometimes greater than what is required in the airline business. “You go from intercontinental flying to remote northern flying, which requires a different set of skills,” he adds. “You look at the flight departments of companies like Suncor and Shell and they are operating what would fit into a regional airline model.”

Traditionally, larger airlines have tapped into regional operators or the Canadian Forces for recruits. As would be expected, military flying is one of the most demanding careers in aviation, and includes fighter pilots, search and rescue, and flying heavy-lift transports into some of the world’s tightest hot spots.

The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) is reporting a pilot shortage, and will train university students and graduates from all degree programs to fly, with no previous flight school experience necessary. According to leaked documents, the RCAF cannot produce the 125 new pilots it needs each year, and has asked retired pilots
to re-enlist.