When airline accidents soared in the 1970s, Congress turned to independent experts for recommendations—and the government used them to transform U.S. air transportation into the world’s safest transport system. Today, as the nation looks to increase the diversity of its aviation workforce so that it better reflects the customers and communities it serves, Congress has again turned to independent experts for help—but will our lawmakers act on the recommendations?

With graduation season upon us, many collegiate aviators are taking the next step toward embarking on their professional piloting careers. 

At Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, ALPA Aviation Collegiate Education (ACE) Club co-presidents Tess Osborne and Will Kasdan, industry liaison officer Man Nguyen, special assignment officer and former club president Evan Jones, and treasurer Christopher Pile all graduated with distinction from the College of Aviation with degrees in aeronautical sciences. 

Attracting the best and the brightest to join the ranks of today’s professional airline pilots should be a priority. ALPA has long been and remains committed to fostering a safe, competitive, modern, and resilient air transportation system, which means creating a more diverse and inclusive workforce. And it is critical that the United States continues to stand as the global leader in aviation safety. 

Truly, this has been a monumental effort. Over the last three years, the U.S. government, American taxpayers, airline labor, and company managements have risen to the challenge of the pandemic. We have reached out and worked together—and we saved our industry. We were ready for the comeback!

 

But right now, as passengers return to the skies, and after securing federal aid on a scale no other industry received, some airlines’ failure to plan for recovery threatens to cost our industry the comeback. ALPA is not about to let that happen.

 

Let me be clear: ALPA pilots and other aviation workers got our industry to this side of the pandemic. When COVID-19 struck, our members immediately went full throttle into driving the public health response, protecting aviation workers and jobs, and preparing our industry to seize the opportunity when recovery came.

 

 

My name is Habib A. Ahary, an Arab American born and raised in New York City. I have had a passion for aviation since I was very young, and shortly after the arrival of my first child, I decided to pursue this passion. Becoming a full-time Vaughn College student, I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in aircraft operations with a minor in air traffic control. I completed all my flight training at the Academy of Aviation in Long Island, N.Y., where I became a full-time certified flight instructor to build my hours.