JetBlue announces new pilot training program, no experience required
JetBlue announced Monday it is taking applications for 24 spots in a new pilot training program. Aside from the limited number of spots, the training also won't come cheap: The four-year program will cost about $125,000 per person.
The Gateway Select training program is a partnership with pilot training business CAE.
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"We believe this is going to be an important part of how airlines are going to create pilots in the future," Nick Leontidis, president of CAE, told the Associated Press.
Although no aviation experience is required, the airline will be "highly selective" in choosing trainees.
"Applicants will undergo a series of assessments aimed at identifying those who demonstrate the qualities needed to become a high-performing pilot," the airline announced.
The intensive four-year program will put pilot trainees through a series of courses, including "fundamentals of aviation" at JetBlue University in Orlando, core flying skills, FAA licensing, and instructing newer recruits while racking up the FAA-required 1,500 flight hours.
The airline will be "highly selective" in choosing trainees.
Warren Christie, JetBlue's senior vice president of safety and training, says the program won't replace the airline's traditional pipelines for pilots, many of whom come from smaller airlines. JetBlue hired more than 300 pilots last year, and a group of 30 new hires just started training last week, he says.
When all of the training program requirements are completed, pilots will become a new hire, the airline says, and begin orientation standard for Embraer E190 first officers complete.
Applications are open now, and the first group will begin in late summer 2016. Starting pay for an E190 first officer is $40,798.80.
Additional reporting by the Associated Press
