There are more signs of optimism in the European airline industry as Ryanair hunts for 2000 pilots to crew its delayed Boeing 737 MAX deliveries.
The announcement came as Air France-KLM confirmed it was in the market for 160 new jets to boost its KLM and low-cost Transavia units.
READ: Air france-KLM in the market for 160 new jets
Ryanair has taken delivery of its first MAX aircraft, which it labels the 737-8200 “Gamechanger”, and says it will need to recruit the new pilots over the next three years as more than 210 jets arrive.
It plans to take delivery of more than 50 of the new planes this summer as it ramps up schedules as part of recovery plans after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Europe’s leading airline labels the new planes a gamechanger because the aircraft, powered by CFM International’s LEAP-1B engines and incorporating advanced winglets, is significantly quieter than its predecessor and delivers up to 14 percent lower fuel consumption than 737 NGs.
It originally expected to receive the first plane in the first quarter of 2019 but this was thwarted by the grounding of the global 737 MAX fleet after two fatal accidents.
The airline said most captain vacancies created by the new aircraft would be filled by internal promotions, creating opportunities for replacement first officers and new cadets.
Training courses run through a partnership with Airline Flight Academy in Dublin are slated to take place through 2021 to be ready for Summer 2022 for positions across Europe.
“This is great news for experienced and aspiring pilots but also for our own pilots who will enjoy fast tracked promotions,” Ryaniar people director Darrell Hughs said.
“Throughout the pandemic, Ryanair has worked closely with our people to save jobs and we are delighted to start planning for a return to growth over the coming years as we recover from the Covid-19 crisis and grow to 200m guests by FY2024’’.
