"Hiring for Success in Aviation"
By: CAAP

Recruiting and hiring the best aviation employees is a critical and challenging process. Quality hiring decisions are crucial to the health and safety of a flight organization. This article touches briefly on issues that aircraft owners might consider prior to extending an offer of employment to a flight department leader, pilot, or mechanic. 

There are currently approximately 600,000 registered pilots in the United States. A large percentage of these pilots are non-professional aviators or inactive pilots. The term "professional pilot" can be defined by those individuals who, at a minimum, hold either the Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate or the Commercial Pilot certificate. There are 106,000 pilots with the ATP certificate, and 118,000 pilots with the Commercial Pilot certificate. Although many of these professional pilots are employed in the airline industry, there is still a very large talent pool of qualified individuals, especially considering the depressed business aviation environment of the last three years. In addition to the pilot certificate, turbine-powered aircraft pilots are required to possess a type-rating in the make and model of aircraft prior to serving as pilot-in-command. This rating is typically earned through a simulator-based flight training facility, many of which have locations dispersed throughout the world. Type-ratings can be applicable to multiple aircraft types. For example, all of the Citation 500-series jets (Citation 500, 501, I, II, SII, V, Bravo, Ultra, Encore) require the same type rating. However, due to the performance and avionics differences between these aircraft, owners may want to invest in additional "differences training" for new pilots who do not have experience in the specific aircraft to be flown. Any owner should have confidence that their pilot has the experience necessary to operate the aircraft safely. The pilot's total flight time, make and model-specific flight time, and regional experience should be scrutinized.

Although not required in all circumstances, most mechanics in corporate flight departments maintain licenses that allow them to make legal entries in an aircraft's logbooks or to sign for the work of another mechanic. The most widely-held license is the Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) license. This allows a mechanic to conduct inspections and make repairs to an aircraft and enter these events into the legal maintenance records of the aircraft. The mechanic is authorized to work on an aircraft for any level of inspection, but only an A&P with Inspection Authorization (IA) is legally authorized to sign for the Annual Inspections. The IA designation is not required in most corporate aviation environments, but demonstrates an added level of education, expertise, and sophistication.

Once an owner is confident in the pilot or mechanic's legal certification, there are additional factors for consideration. There is a strong correlation between an individual's past performance and that person's future performance. In order to feel confident in an individual pilot or mechanic's chances of excelling as your crewmember, their previous experiences should be heavily scrutinized. Understanding the demands of your organization along with the demands of a candidate's prior organization will help with the decision-making process. For example, an individual with a strong airline background may not have developed the skills demanded by the more personal small flight department. A mechanic who has excelled for many years in a small flight department, serving the needs of a small business or family, may be a great candidate if your organizational profile is similar. Although there are exceptions, finding an individual with a proven history in an organization like yours will reduce the risk of problems in the future due to work demands and expectations.

Once an owner is confident that an individual is legally qualified to operate the aircraft, has demonstrated a history of safe operations, and has excelled in prior flight organizations, the most critical step is to thoroughly understand the personality and work style of the individual. Building a healthy and happy flight organization is more of an art than a science. If resources permit, hiring a trustworthy flight department manager can be the most effective way for an owner to delegate the duties of the flight organization. Building a team with cohesion that includes a leader, pilots, and mechanics takes time. Personality assessment tests, like the The Birkman Method or the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator, can help an owner predict the cohesion between members of a prospective team. Although these tests require cost and time to complete, they will help reduce the risk of avoidable conflict in the future. 

A successful flight organization, whether large or small, requires a significant amount of time and effort to build. Small organizations with only two pilots, and large organizations with ten pilots and two mechanics all require thorough due diligence of the individuals applying for the position. Safety is always the top priority in the aviation business. Beyond this, hiring for success is critical to the long-term satisfaction of all parties who own, use, or operate the aircraft.