US March Air Passenger Numbers Reach Record High... Industry Resumes Pilot Hiring

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The number of air passengers in the United States has soared to the highest level since the pandemic. The industry says the crisis in air travel triggered by COVID-19 has entered a recovery phase, prompting a resumption of hiring.

On the 1st (local time), the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that the number of airport screenings (air passengers) in the U.S. during March reached approximately 38 million. This is the highest figure in one year since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March last year.

On 26 out of 31 days last month, the daily number of air passengers exceeded one million. On the 28th, the first weekend after the U.S. government began distributing COVID-19 relief funds, the daily passenger count hit a record high of 1,574,228.

In early March last year, the number of air passengers was around 700,000 to 1 million, about half compared to the same period the previous year. However, as vaccinations increased, the upward trend continued, raising expectations for normalization of the air travel market.

In response to strong demand rebound, United Airlines became the first major U.S. airline to resume pilot hiring. Brian Quigley, Vice President of United Airlines, stated in a memo to internal staff that "With vaccination rates rising and travel demand increasing, we will restart pilot hiring that was halted last year," adding, "We will prioritize hiring about 300 pilots who were offered part-time positions last year or whose new hires were canceled."

The scale of this new hiring is about 2.5% of the current pilot workforce (12,000). United Airlines, which was hit hard by COVID-19, has been encouraging reductions through retirements or voluntary leaves for about 1,000 pilots since September last year.

CNBC reported, "This is the first major U.S. airline to resume pilot hiring, signaling preparation for a surge in travel demand as the COVID-19 recovery progresses." Scott Kirby, CEO of United Airlines, said at a U.S. aviation conference held that day, "Travel and tourism demand within the U.S. has almost fully recovered."

Meanwhile, health authorities have expressed concerns, calling it "premature." The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends avoiding travel as much as possible despite ongoing COVID-19 vaccinations. Rochelle Walensky, CDC Director, urged travelers to refrain from traveling in a recent interview with CNN, saying, "Looking at previous cases such as Labor Day and Christmas holidays last year, confirmed cases surged once people started moving."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.