By 2010, there will be worldwide need for 80,000 commercial pilots, due to retiring senior pilots that airlines will shed over recent economic fluctuations in fuel pricing, industry officials say.

Take Flight, a Federal Aviation Administration-approved flight school based in Anchorage, is refinancing and overhauling its aircraft to meet an upcoming demand for commercial pilots.

“Face it, most individuals who decide to become commercial pilots go Outside to get their training,” said Rodger Davis, a consultant working for the owners of Take Flight. “What we want is to keep them here, train them on Alaska flying, and transition them to Alaska-based aviation companies.”

According to FAA records, only four or five Alaska pilots a year become commercial pilots. An estimated 60 to 80 pilots a year are hired from outside the state, according to a survey of local Federal Air Regulation Part 135 (flying aircraft with fewer than 10 passengers), and Part 121 (flying aircraft with more than 10 passengers) businesses.

Davis is concerned that the number of locally trained pilots is too low and wants to offer something other flight schools don't: an emphasis on Alaska flying.

“We have a Cessna 207 that we are using for Part 135 flight seeing operations, and we are going to train new commercial pilots how to fly this airplane as part of their commercial training,” said Davis.

As part of the flight school, Take Flight's graduation of commercial pilots has reflected the FAA's reported trend of only a handful graduating yearly.

“We want to change this from three or four to a minimum of six pilots a year now to as many as 15 in the coming year,” said Davis. Davis added that this model could double the company's annual revenue once it is implemented.

Davis said the company plans to refocus on the type of students it attracts and try to offer something far different.

“We want to specialize in making commercial pilots. That will be our new business model and we are revamping our fleet to achieve this,” said Davis.

Getting a license to fly is not cheap. It's about $8,000 to obtain a private pilot's license. To earn a commercial license is another $22,000. The state of Alaska offers loan programs and other financing is available to help finance the fees, but most student pilots must also work to pay for housing expenses.

“We desperately need a grant or program that covers housing while training,” said Davis.

Take Flight is refinancing its $800,000 a year business and is working to change its business model. Meanwhile, local commuter airlines are hiring pilots from outside of Alaska.

“Two years ago we had a pilot shortage and were forced to look Outside, we had agreements with University of North Dakota, Embry-Riddle, and the University of Alaska,” said Danny Seybert, president and chief operations officer for Peninsula Airways Inc.

A dilemma in Alaska has been that the demand for pilots is so strong that flight schools are losing their instructors to commercial airlines. Once instructors have 500 hours of flight time, they are eligible to commuter or air taxi operations.

Currently air taxi operators want pilots with at least 50 hours of Alaska experience, and a minimum of 600 total flight hours. Davis is building the Take Flight model to not only include instruction up to the license minimum, but to include Alaska time in aircraft in planes like the Cessna 207, a workhorse of the Bush.

The demand in the past has been so strong that local commuter airlines are advertising from outside the state, and some even offer scholarship programs with the caveat that they have first right of refusal to hire the recipients upon graduation.

With current fuel prices, airlines are redefining their services and pilot structure to make up for revenue shortages.

Davis says this will be a short-lived lull, and the trend will move back toward another shortage by 2010, when airline pilots who are now in their early 60s will retire.

Across the way at Merrill Field is another flight school, Aero-Tech Flight Services Inc.

In business for 53 years, Aero-Tech officials say that their company trains between 15 and 18 commercial pilots a year.

The school offers programs for Part 141, an FAA-approved flight school, and for Part 61, which is the certification requirements for pilots, flight instructors and ground instructors, said Richard Ardaiz, who runs the business along with his wife, Ramona.

“If you have never seen an airplane and want to get a commercial license, we can do that in the Part 141 school in 190 hours to save you money and time. But if you have a lot of time and experience, we train pilots like that under Part 61 rules,” said Ardaiz.

Ardaiz says commercial pilots come here to fly because they can't get hired any place else.

“They come here to fly back and forth to hell holes and in bad weather and build up their time, and then get the hell out while they can to go fly for Horizon Air or some other commuter outfit,” he said.

In the meantime, Take Flight is looking to grow its fleet by one aircraft and overhaul the other eight with new engines, interiors and exterior paint schemes. The new array of aircraft will include two-place trainers and multi-engine aircraft, for commercial licenses and advanced ratings.