Operators need to collaborate and highlight the appeal of working in the industry, instead of their own set-ups, to tackle the expected shortfall in skilled workers.
Civil aviation’s Commercial Services Market covers four distinct segments – MRO and modifications, parts and supply chain, training and professional services, and digital solutions and analytics – even if they are all inextricably linked.
Its notable presence in all four has enabled Boeing to accurately predict the market’s growth in its annual 20-year forecast, making use of the same proprietary models it uses to predict world airline fleet and government budgets, factoring in independent assessments of the forces driving specific markets.
ccording to its latest report, the Commercial Services Market will grow by 4.3 percent every year over the next two decades – a striking increase that will require the recruitment of 2.4 million new personnel, of which 716,000 are highly-skilled technicians. Meanwhile, an Airbus report, its 2024-43 Global Services Forecast, calculates the shortfall will be as much as 690,000.
In countries where populations are ageing fast – for example, in western and central Europe – this is an industry-wide problem. It’s hard to see how these countries will cope without recruiting skilled workers from overseas.
But in the Commercial Services Market, even the countries with young populations face a shortage of workers.
Africa faces an overall shortfall of 76,000 workers (technicians, pilots and cabin crew) but this could end up being much higher if Eurasia recruits workers from Africa to alleviate its own 1.065 million labour drain. After all, supply chain bottlenecks in Africa will ripple through to Eurasia. It’s a wake-up call for the entire industry that it’s not just about recruiting more talent, but creating more of it – and fast.
READ MORE: Challenges and opportunities for the aviation industry in 2025
Talking up the benefits of a career in aviation support
At present, reports Boeing, there is “insufficient training capacity” to address the anticipated shortfall of 716,000 technicians over the next two decades.
The industry, recommends Boeing, will need to invest in early career-development programs and outreach efforts. Certainly, the Commercial Services Market has a few aces up its sleeve.
Generation Z – potential recruits aged 16 to 28 – like to travel more than any other age group, and a career in the Commercial Services Market, for example, is tailor-made for this demographic. Generation Z and millennials (aged 16-44) tend to be more drawn to high-tech careers than older generations, so both are particularly a good fit for MRO and digital solutions/analytics. And then there is the allure of working in aviation – it’s safe to say that repairing aircraft mere minutes before they take to the skies with hundreds of passengers is more high stakes than fixing an automobile or a boiler.
In general, it’s a highly stimulating career path, with excellent opportunities for career growth and promotions.
Surveys find that the majority of workers in the Commercial Services Market are open to a change of environment but happy to continue working in the industry. So certainly, the Commercial Services Market needs to invest in recruitment, but operators must bear in mind that their talents are likely to move on. Highlighting the benefits of working in the industry should be prioritised over the benefits of working for a particular operator or a particular airport.
How AR can be used to alleviate recruitment challenges
The Commercial Services Market faces many challenges with its training programs, as the lag time between commencement and certification can be immense. So unlike other industries, fast-tracking its training programs is not an easy option.
Super-stringent safety protocols are in place to ensure anyone working in close proximity to aviation has been heavily vetted before being granted the necessary certification. This might not sound like a problem if recruitment is proceeding at a healthy rate, but what happens when the industry requires a quick injection of labour, like after the lifting of the 2020-22 restrictions? Certainly, the pandemic posed reputational challenges for aviation employment, underscoring the need for more resilient workforce strategies.
Many who had considered aviation a safe bet will have changed their minds. And then there is the job itself. Not only can it be physically demanding and involve long working hours and potentially shift work, but it also requires a high level of proficiency. Not everyone will make the cut. The training process can be arduous and potentially expensive, although augmented reality (AR) is enabling MROs to train personnel remotely.
By 2030, 72 percent of all MRO operations will be using AR in some sort of capacity, although this might not bode well for regions in which potential MRO workers find themselves drawn to the idea of relocating.
READ MORE: How to streamline your aviation supply chain with less manpower
Robots and AI a keen area of focus for the sector
Of course, none of those drawbacks would affect robots – an increasingly popular solution in many industries – but for the time being, most of the work is too challenging and too safety-orientated for robots to be entrusted with fixing an aircraft on their own.
Robots are already being widely used in MRO – from cleaning the fuselage to carrying out inspections – but their work needs the scrutiny and approval of a human.
Nevertheless, there is an inevitability that AI-powered robots, and other forms of automation, will take over many of the MRO tasks that are manually performed, and that this will go some way to alleviating the labour shortfalls over the next two decades.
Already, AI-powered technologies are making a significant impression – most notably in the area of data collection and analytics, using tools such as advanced IoT sensors and digital twins.
For the time being, robots are expensive, and a strong business case needs to be drawn up that they can achieve savings for the MRO operatives whilst delivering a level of performance equitable, or preferably superior, to manual workers.
READ MORE: Are robots the MRO workers of the future?
SATAIR TAKEAWAY
As things stand, the Commercial Services Market risks falling short of its growth potential due to projected labour shortages. To attract the necessary personnel, operators need to collaborate and highlight the appeal of working in the industry, as opposed to their own set-ups.
Collaboration will also play a key role in the way the industry innovates in the areas of automation, data and robotics, which all have the potential to alleviate labour shortages.