When Jet Jockeys Get Grounded

Covid-19 has put thousands of pilots out of work and left many facing an earthbound future

- James E. Ellis

Two years ago, Qantas Airways Ltd. pilot Richard Garner, who’s based in Brisbane, Australia, set up a company to provide financial advice and arrange loans for airline staff. It was never meant to be a career—Garner flew his first plane at age 14 and never wanted to do anything else. Until March he was flying Airbus A330 widebodies on long-haul routes between Australia and Asia. Then Qantas furloughed two-thirds of its 30,000 employees, including the 43-year-old Garner.

Now, he says, his firm, Crew Financial, “has turned into the No. 1 gig. It’s not the story I really wanted to have, but when the world gives you lemons, make lemonade. Isn’t that what you say?”

Flying $250 million airliners was once a lucrative line of work, and there was no shortage of opportunity. Last year, Boeing Co. estimated airlines would need to add 800,000 pilots over the next 20 years to feed an Asia-led travel boom, and some carriers in China were offering salaries of more than $300,000 a year to woo industry veterans.

Then the coronavirus hit, overseas travel halted, and what was once a dream job turned into no job at all. With 51% of the world’s global fleet grounded, pilots have turned to a mishmash of odd jobs and second-choice careers as they wait to see whether they’ll ever get back in the cockpit.

They’re hardly alone: 1 billion workers across industries worldwide could face unemployment or pay cuts as a result of Covid lockdowns, border closures, and economic paralysis. But few jobs have swung from such a severe shortage to a vast surplus as quickly as that of pilots.