Flights Delayed; it’s because our pilots are not getting paid

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“What we really have is job offers that are not competitive right now. Pilots are choosing career paths that are better paid.”

Tim Perry, a working pilot for WestJet and the president of the Air Line Pilots Association Canada (2023)

You know those stories about nightmare flights? The ones where you think, “It couldn’t possibly be that bad?” Well, I lived it. On July 23^rd, 2024, I was supposed to land in British Columbia at 11:00 am, bright and early, ready to take on the day, but what actually happened? I didn’t step foot in BC until 11:00 pm—yes, 12 hours later.

The day started with optimism, as most travel days do, but then the first cancellation hit. Okay, I thought, these things happen. I adjusted, rebooked, and got ready to move on. Then came the second cancellation, and that’s when the sinking feeling set in. Sigh! Instead of things improving, they spiraled. The flight got delayed—once, twice, three times. By the fourth delay, I was numb to the announcements, feeling like I was in some twisted game where the rules kept changing, but the outcome remained the same – stuck in limbo.

After all that—the waiting, the frustration, the exhaustion—I finally arrived in BC, but here’s the kicker: no compensation. Not a single offer to make things right, even after I took the time to share my feedback with the airline.

During those endless hours at the airport, I had the chance to speak with other passengers. Misery loves company, after all. It was through those conversations that I learned the root of my current flight woes.

Pilots are saying enough is enough. They need to earn a living wage that will enable them to afford an apartment, support a family, and maybe even take an annual vacation.

Reportedly, one of the airlines that has been ranking dead last among North America’s 10 major airlines in on-time performance in 2023 is Air Canada. It just so happens that this was the airline that I flew with on July 23^rd, 2024, and the same airline that some pilots are having issues with. The thing about it; the airline can afford to be fair. The company posted a $2.28-billion profit in 2023 ($1.71 billion in adjusted net income). For that, Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau was rewarded with a $2.6-million bonus, and executives at Air Canada get compensated at rates on par with their counterparts working for legacy airlines in the U.S.

Is this the reason why so many of us are dealing with flight delays and unnecessary cancellations? Are our pilots not being paid enough?

In 2023, a job listing for a first officer at Calm Air had a salary range of $34,014 to $82,603 while the Perimeter Aviation collective agreement listed the base salary for a first officer with four to five years of experience as just over $35,700. A captain can make as little as $36,108 as their base salary.

To work in the U.S., Canadian pilots must have a high level of experience and be sponsored by an American employer. It’s not an easy feat, so other Canadian pilots opt to work with recruitment agencies that help them find employment in the Middle East or Asia.

You can only imagine (because we are all dealing with it) the escalating cost of living is making it impossible to work for the low wages paid by Canadian operators.

“There has to be a reasonable opportunity and a reasonable incentive to go up there,” said Eric Schletz, an Edmonton-area Class 1 flight instructor who has logged more than 5,000 hours total time at 702 (aerial work), 703 (air taxi), 704 (commuter), and flight training operations. He spoke with Lisa Gordon from “ISkies” and he told her that the way he sees it, the Canadian aviation industry is going through a painful, but necessary, reset. A number of factors are coming together to create today’s pilot shortage.

As a flight instructor, Eric also sees students struggling to afford their pilot training, and he believes the lack of funding is a contributor to the pilot shortage – people simply can’t afford their training anymore.

Of course, it’s about the total compensation package. People have to be incentivized and make logical decisions.

Let’s make the comparison of a pilot to being a lawyer. While lawyers see a return on their education relatively promptly, pilots can spend $100,000 on their training only to be stuck on a dock, making poverty-level wages. There’s just no sense in that.

It cannot be denied, operators’ costs have risen steeply in recent years, but a pilot’s cost of living has increased, too. It is why a report in March 2024 exposed that 70% of Air Canada pilots are willing to walk away if pay doesn’t improve.

“It’s not justifiable that our American counterparts — flying the same airplanes, same airspace, same routes — that they’re making twice as much as us, if not more,” declares Charlene Hudy, first officer on the 737 Max and chair of the Air Canada pilots union.

For the past seven months, Charlene has been hammering this message at the negotiating table with Air Canada, demanding parity with American counterparts on behalf of the nearly 5,300 pilots on Air Canada’s roster. A decade ago, pilot salaries at Air Canada and United Airlines were nearly equal; today, the Americans earn twice as much.

The salary range for Canadian pilots is roughly $40,000 for a new hire to more than $200,000 for an experienced captain. If fair compensation isn’t on offer, this airline will experience a talent drain of epic proportions,

It was, without a doubt, the longest day of my life. A day that should have been spent exploring, working, or relaxing was instead consumed by: delays, cancellations, and the stark realization that, sometimes, the customer experience isn’t a priority.

So, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from this experience, it’s to prepare for the unexpected and, most importantly, to advocate for yourself. If you don’t, who will?