Wanted: 637,000 more pilots to handle travel surge in 20 years

[SINGAPORE] More and more people are getting ready to travel by plane. Who is going to fly them?

Airlines, especially those in Asia, have ordered new aircraft worth hundreds of billions of dollars in the past few years as rising incomes boost travel numbers to a record. This has led to a shortage of experienced pilots, a situation that looks set to worsen. The world will need 637,000 more pilots in the two decades through 2036, Boeing predicts.

Most will be headed for Asia, which will account for 40 per cent of the new pilots, surpassing levels for Europe and North America combined, according to Boeing.

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