In addition to a commercial license, pilots who have to fly in bad weather must be licensed by the FAA to fly by instruments. Pilots may qualify for this license by having 40 hours of experience on procedures and FAA regulations covering instrument flying, and demonstrating their ability to flying by school. Most pilots are college graduates. Many job openings are filled by pilots who have acquired their training in the Armed Forces. Other entrants are recent graduates of civilian flying schools.
Most pilots are college graduates.
By law, Airline pilots cannot fly more than 85 hours a month or more than 1,000 hours a year, and usually only fly 16 days a month. When pilots are away from home the airlines provide hotel accommodations and an allowance for expense. Flying does not involve much physical effort, but the mental stress of being responsible for a safe flight, no matter what the weather, can be very tiring. Pilots are expected to face considerable competition for jobs through the year 2008 because the number of applicants for new positions is expected to exceed the number of job openings. Competition will be especially keen early in the projection period due to a temporary increase in the pool of qualified pilots seeking jobs.