positioned to give an insight into the
current shortage in manpower and the
solutions that are in train.
Not only is Macasek faced with the
potential need to increase ghter pilot
production, but also the demand to
train ghter pilots for the cockpits of the
latest fth-generation ghters, plus the
impending — and desperately needed —
transition from the ageing T-38 Talon to
the new T-X.
The reasons behind the US Air Force’s
much-publicized pilot shortage are
multiple and its declining operational
readiness has recently been added to the
list of concerns. Mission-capable rateshave declined over recent years with some
abysmal gures reported for FY2017. The
F-22, for example, slid to just 49.01 per
cent. Many senior o cials are warning of a
deepening crisis.
According to an Air Force Times report
in early March, the service needs around
20,000 pilots across the eld and, despite
numerous attempts at retaining that
number, it is about 2,000 short. The report
cites lucrative jobs in the airline industry
as the leading factor and, with the mission
capable rates now falling, the issue is
exacerbated — ‘Pilots who don’t y, don’t
stay with us,’ warned USAF Chief of Sta
Gen David Goldfein recently. However,average ying rates are reported to be
hitting 17.6 hours per month, with ghter
pilots notching up around 16.4. The
averages are misleading. Deployed pilots
are ying much higher rates than those
stateside and therefore skewing the gures
to leave a sorry, ‘demoralizing’ tale of low
rates and skill loss when at home plate.
In the face of all this, there are whispers
of the need for squadrons like the 49th FTS
to double output of new pilots to address
the issue.New jet, new challenges
The corridors of the 49th FTS ‘Black
Knights’ are groaning under the weightSquadrons like
the 49th FTS are
ramping up their
pilot output to try
to help meet the
pilot shortage
problem.http://www.combataircraft.net // July 2018 29
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