The aviation world is by now well aware that we have a pilot shortage, and not only in the United States, either. The world's largest manufacturer of aircraft, Boeing Company, keeps close tabs on the pilot market, for obvious reasons. If there aren't enough pilots, then who will fly the planes they build? Seems obvious. What is less intuitive is that the pilot market has an impact on Boeing's market because the airlines expand service based on their abilities to run their operations. If they can't get pilots, they can't very well introduce new routes. And if they don't add to their business, they don't need to buy new planes. Like Boeing, these airlines make their projections many years into the future. So the number of pilots available today and in the years to come directly affects future orders. Because airlines order their planes many years in advance, projected pilot staffing levels will affect present-day orders, too. If there won't be enough pilots to go around, let alone expand service, in 2022, that lack of confidence in the ability to staff up will affect the airlines' outlook and orders.
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