Communities Are Losing Air Service
Rally Together to Stop the Loss

“This is a national issue. It’s affecting the whole domestic aviation industry but disproportionately affecting smaller regional carriers.”
- Pete Buttigieg, DOT SecretarySenate Commerce hearing, May 2022
“There has been a looming pilot shortage for the last decade in the United States, and going through COVID it became an actual pilot shortage.”
Scott Kirby, CEO UnitedSenate hearing, December 2021
“We are down flying in the first half of the year on some of the regional carriers given some of the staffing challenges we’re facing, primarily because of pilot hiring.”
Ed Bastian, CEO DeltaJanuary 2022
“The real constraint is pilot hiring.”
Bob Jordan, Southwest Airlines CEOApril 2022
“The access to pilots really becomes the governing factor for growth in the industry over the next few years.”
Robin Hayes, CEO JetBlue April 2022.
"I think this [the pilot shortage] is going to be one of the biggest constraints for the industry going forward.”
Ben Minicucci, Alaska Air Group CEOApril 2022
“We have probably a hundred aircraft that
aren’t productive right now, that aren’t flying”
Robert Isom, CEOAmerican Airlines
“It's definitely an emergency situation,"
Walt McNutt, ChairmanSidney-Richland airport authority in Eastern Montana
“The pilot shortage for the industry is real, and most airlines are simply not going to be able to realize their capacity plans because there simply aren’t enough pilots, at least not for the next five-plus years,”
Scott Kirby, CEO United AirlinesApril 2022
“There’s a huge pilot shortage….a lot of airplanes are parked right now in the desert southwest.” [Commenting on flight cuts this summer at the Eagle County Regional Airport,]
David Reid, Eagle County, CO Aviation Director May 2022
“Not to say that you lose the airport, you lose the town. But it is critical that … we find something that can assure people that, ‘It’s OK to live out here in rural Kansas because we still have great air service.’”
Eli Svaty, Seward County Development Corporation,May 2022
“Now that demand is back, there are no pilots to fly the planes.” “[The pilot shortage is] the big reason we’re seeing reduced flights.”
Aaron Buck, Airport DirectorYellowstone Regional Airport, WY.
“There is a significant pilot shortage in our industry and that resulted in unfortunately in Delta pulling out of our market completely.” Grand Junction Regional Airport, CO, March 2022.
Angela Padalecki, Airport Director, Grand Junction Regional Airport, CO, March 2022
“We can’t tolerate losing all airline service. That doesn’t help Quincy, and it absolutely doesn’t help our region.”
Mike Troup, MayorQuicy, IL, May 2022
“They're losing pilots at the top end faster than they can hire on the bottom end."
Toby Dougherty, Hays city manager, KS March 2022
"We are disappointed to confirm SHD is one of the affected airports. This announcement is a direct result of the ongoing severe pilot shortage in the aviation industry and not an indication of poor utilization of the service." Shenandoah.
Valley Regional Airport (SHD)Statement following SkyWest announcement to pull air service, March 2022.
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FACT: 75% of US airports (325 airports) have less air service today than before the pandemic, despite rising passenger demand. Airports have lost an average of 31% of their flights, a figure that has worsened and will worsen without action.

Rally for Air Service is a coalition formed to communicate the harms of a growing pilot shortage and to urge solutions. We represent a wide range of aviation stakeholders with a shared interest in addressing the shortage and preserving and rebuilding air service in smaller communities.

Our Mission is to educate the public about air service loss and advance solutions that preserve and enhance aviation safety, allow greater and more equitable access to pilot careers, and preserve and restore air service in the United States

Airports With Service Loss/Reductions

Scroll over cities to see percentage of air service lost since 2019

  • All
  • Communities losing ALL air service.
  • Communities losing LESS than 25% air service.
  • Communities losing MORE than 25% air service.

A crisis level shortage of pilots in the United States has forced airlines to make sweeping schedule cuts, mostly in smaller communities. With too few pilots to serve all of today’s routes, passengers have far fewer options today vs. several years ago. Comparing 2022 with 2019, more than 300 airports have lost up to a quarter of their air service, more than 160 airports have lost more than a quarter of their service.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
29 Nov 1597633855288389632

The latest community experiencing the pain of less air service. #pilotshortage https://www.wboc.com/news/salisbury-regional-airport-impacted-by-nationwide-pilot-shortage/article_d3fd85da-6f42-11ed-b0b1-2f014f284dc5.html

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
17 Nov 1593325382891196416

"Pilot shortage grounds planes" - too many headlines like this across the US. #pilotshortage https://www.daytondailynews.com/local/pilots-shortage-grounds-planes-dampens-business-opportunities/PQ2YSYOG6FFJJPBVCUG3CGUVLE/

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
15 Nov 1592631839512231937

Wow. It's never been a better time to be a pilot.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
15 Nov 1592624344458760192

The problem of air service declines caused by the pilot shortage is getting worse. #pilotshortage https://www.travelpulse.com/news/airlines/pilot-shortage-causing-flight-service-decline-at-us-airports.html

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
14 Nov 1592254805371936770

Too few pilots and too little action to address it. #pilotshortage https://www.cnbc.com/video/2022/09/13/why-the-us-is-running-out-of-pilots.html

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
27 Oct 1585687901865639953

"We are short pilots to fly all of our aircraft" - CEO Bob Jordan on @CNBC today

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
27 Oct 1585681130291871744

Fast Company: "The pilot ranks are also shrinking fast: At least 5,773 baby boomer pilots retire each year because they hit the mandatory retirement age of 65 required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)." #pilotshortage https://www.fastcompany.com/90800310/pilot-shortage-airlines-diverse-hiring-benefits

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
26 Oct 1585302726853816320

Thank you to Dayton for joining the RFAS coalition.“We are committed to finding solutions for this problem to ensure DAY remains a viable option for the region’s business community,” said Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein https://www.daytondailynews.com/local/city-chamber-join-coalition-worried-about-shortage-of-pilots/7WH3JFSGHRDV7PRAWVO4N7ND64/

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
24 Oct 1584584096201592843

"Regional jet airports like DAY will always lose pilots to the major carriers, but we have easy solutions right in front of us that will help DAY return air service" https://daytonchamber.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Update-page.pdf @RepMikeTurner #pilotshortage

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
21 Oct 1583533028261122048

“The demand for pilots is especially intense right now" https://www.sent-trib.com/2022/10/18/bgsu-partners-with-one-of-the-largest-u-s-regional-airlines-creates-workforce-pipeline-for-aviation-students/ #pilotshortage

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
18 Oct 1582462786709336065

More air service cancelled due to the pilot shortage, and this time it hits the home of DOT @SecretaryPete

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
13 Oct 1580573242414489601

Do you want to get a great summary of how to become a pilot and take advantage of the $202,000 average commercial pilot salary? Here it is.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
13 Oct 1580571815457435648

"I'm depleting my life savings" - not a solution to the pilot shortage. Join us in our efforts to end the pilot shortage.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
15 Sep 1570456491655585792

Watch this skilled pilot pull 8Gs on takeoff. https://twitter.com/ilove_aviation/status/1570065118964191236

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
15 Sep 1570455790523383808

Honoring pilot firsts is always worth doing!

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
15 Sep 1570408926708899840

Too many routes dropped, too many cities losing air service.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
12 Sep 1569361109651492868

@pilotbrii1 Keep chasing those dreams! Safely!

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
6 Sep 1567223287440195587

Dubuque is the latest city to suffer from air service cuts, caused mainly by the pilot shortage.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
2 Sep 1565794876876259330

As millions fly this weekend, it's terrible that many cities have seen a major drop off in flights. In fact 72% of cities have less air service than before the pandemic. We can solve the pilot shortage.

Rally For Air Service @RallyAirService ·
2 Sep 1565793980532547584

Solving the pilot shortage is possible if we rally together and embrace every idea. Here are several. #pilotshortage

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