Transportation
Pilot Shortage Threatens Japan’s Goal for 60 Million Tourists
- Nation needs another 1,000 pilots by 2030 amid visitor boom
- JAL, ANA have typically been reluctant to hire foreign talent
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As record tourists flock to Japan for its world-renowned hospitality, exceptional sushi and ancient shrines, the country’s airlines are facing a severe shortage of pilots. And finding them won’t be easy.
Japan currently has about 7,100 pilots and the government projects another 1,000 will be needed by 2030 to help meet its target of attracting some 60 million tourists that same year. In an acknowledgment that may mean looking outside for talent, measures being considered by a panel set up by the transport ministry earlier this year include converting foreign pilots’ licenses to Japanese ones at a faster and cheaper rate.