Two well-known airlines are suspending pilot hiring: a critical situation has arisen

Airlines operate in a market dictated by supply and demand: if more people want to fly a certain route than there are seats available, then tickets for those flights will cost more.

This makes planning and forecasting demand a significant part of maximizing profits for airlines. However, there are many factors that go into how airlines decide which flights to include in their schedules, as reported by the Daily Courier.

Each airport has a limited number of gates, flight slots, and runway capacity, which restricts the flexibility of carriers. That's why during high-demand times, such as flights to Las Vegas during Super Bowl week, airlines typically don't schedule additional flights.

Airlines typically aim to increase capacity every year. However, this has become challenging as Boeing struggles to meet the demand for new airplanes. If airlines cannot add more airplanes to their fleet, they cannot expand their business, leading to problems for the entire industry.

Each year, airlines retire older aircraft and replace them with newer models that offer greater efficiency and often better passenger amenities.

When airlines are unable to acquire the planes they had planned to add to their fleet, they face capacity issues. This has led Southwest Airlines (LUV) and United Airlines to make inevitable but detrimental decisions for passengers.

Southwest is slowing down its pilot hiring.

In 2023, Southwest made a significant effort to hire pilots, aiming to replace the thousands of pilots who retired during the COVID-19 pandemic and restore its capacity to 2019 levels.

While the airline successfully achieved this, it will not continue at the same pace in 2024.

"Southwest plans to hire approximately 350 pilots this year, with no new hiring classes planned after this month," reports Travel Weekly. "Last year, Southwest hired 1,916 pilots, according to Future & Active Pilot Advisors, a pilot hiring consulting firm. In 2022, the airline hired 1,140 pilots."

The slowdown in hiring is directly linked to the airline's expectation of only a low single-digit percentage increase in capacity in 2024.

"As we approach 2024, there remains uncertainty regarding the timing of expected Boeing deliveries and certification of the Max 7 aircraft. Our fleet plans remain ambitious and are currently distinct from our contract order book with Boeing," said Southwest Airlines Chief Financial Officer Tammy Romo during the airline's fourth-quarter earnings call.

"This year, we plan to deliver 79 aircraft and plan to retire approximately 45,700 and 4,800, resulting in an expected net increase of 30 aircraft this year."

United Airlines suspends pilot hiring.

Boeing's (BA) challenges have had a significant impact on the entire industry. United Airlines has announced that it will suspend hiring new pilots until the end of May.

Mark Champion, vice president of combat operations at United (UA), explained the situation in a memo to the airline's employees.

"As you know, United has hundreds of new aircraft on order, and while we are still on track to become the fastest-growing airline in the industry, we simply will not be growing as fast as we thought we would in 2024 due to ongoing delays at Boeing," he said.

"For example, we had contract deliveries of 80 Max 10s just this year, but those planes aren't even certified yet, and there's no way to know when they'll arrive."

This is another setback for consumers, who were hoping that major carriers would increase capacity, putting pressure on fares. Until Boeing gets back on track, it is unlikely that competition among the major airlines will lead to lower fares.

In fact, consumer demand may outpace airline capacity, potentially driving prices up.

As reported by TravelWise, a United Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft left the paved runway and hit the grass while maneuvering on the ground at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport.