Evil Genius

            The Germanwings accident in 2015 brought the mental state of pilots top the forefront. According to the transcripts of the flight data recorder from that flight, Andreas Lubitz changed the autopilot settings to make a rapid descent that ultimately resulted in the aircraft striking the side of a remote spot in the Alps. The cockpit voice recorder recorded the sounds of the flight crew beating on the cockpit door after the pilot returned, probably from the bathroom. Also, just after the pilot left the cockpit, attempts to reach the aircraft were met with silence. The First Officer, Lubitz, had been grounded and had his training suspended in 2008 during a severe episode. (Huggler, 2017) He was later cleared to fly after he had recovered. In the months leading up to the crash, Lubitz was believed to be losing his eyesight. He had hidden this from Germanwings.          ...

From the research I have done the state of the regional industry in 2017 is better than it was in 2016. The regionals are having difficulties financially due to the increased salaries offered to pilots. These increases in salaries are, in part, a result of the 2009 Colgan Air crash. Another result of that crash was increasing the minimum flight hours from 205 to 1,500. This increase has limited the pool of eligible pilots. Another issue in the pilot shortage is the number of active pilots that are reaching the mandatory retirement age of 65. According to a recent report by Cowen & Company, more than 42% of active U.S. airline pilots at the biggest carriers will retire over the next ten years. (Ostrower, 2017) Although the regionals have enough pilots for now, Boeing estimates that 117,000 new pilots will be needed in the next twenty years. (Ostrower, 2017) There is another factor that is causing concern for the regional airline industry. According to Greg Muccio, a senior manager ...