With a large amount of United Airlines pilots nearing mandatory retirement age, the Chicago based airline says it needs to hire 10,000 new pilots over the next ten years. Approximately 50% of its veteran aviators are nearing the federally mandated retirement age of 65, and the nation’s second-largest airline says it is trying to recruit pilots while they are still early in their training.

In a press release put out by United last Thursday, the airline said it was willing to offer conditional jobs to candidates who apply to a special program while they build up their experience working for regional carriers.

The “Friendly Skies” airline estimates that roughly half of their 12,500 pilots will retire over the next decade and that they will need to hire 10,000 new pilots to replace them while also continuing to grow.

American plane maker Boeing has done its research and says that airlines will need to hire 645,000 pilots between now and 2038. 212,000 of those new pilots will be needed in North America.

Delta Airlines is also worried about having enough pilots

It is not only United who is worrying about where their new pilots are going to come from, with airlines around the world ramping up recruitment. Atlanta based Delta Airlines launched a program last year to encourage non-pilots who were working for the airline to take unpaid leave and go to flight school. The also made conditional job offers to college students in an effort not to run out of qualified personnel.

A major hurdle in hiring American pilots is the amount of money it costs to become a commercial pilot. Business news outlet CNBC claims it can cost as much as $80,000.

To work for an airline as a pilot in the United States you must first have a minimum of 1,500 hours of flight time. Some exceptions are made for military personnel and college students.

You need two years’ experience before you can fly for United

To ensure they have the required number of to fly their aircraft, United Airlines is looking at things like loan forgiveness and job guarantees.

When speaking about some of the initiatives in the United Airlines press release United’s senior vice president of flight operations Bryan Quigley said:

“One of the biggest barriers to getting into the profession is the cost of getting their certification.” “Regional carriers that serve airlines’ shorter routes have had to increase bonuses to new pilots to entice applicants.”

Now could be a good time to become a pilot

For a long time, pilots flying for small airlines were vastly underpaid but that is now hurting regional airlines as a shortage of trained pilots is forcing them to offer better pay and conditions.

United looks to hire pilots from smaller airlines by offering them a better deal, but in order for them to work for United Airlines, they still need to have worked for a regional carrier for two years and have a minimum of 2,000 hours of flight time.

There has probably never been a better time to be a pilot. With the predicted shortage of pilots coming, going to flight school now might not be such a bad idea.