Canada's aviation industry is expected to face a shortage of 55,000 employees by 2035
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Civil Aviation Resources Network, July 8, 2025: According to Simpleflying, a report released by the Alberta Aerospace and Space Council (Alberta AAC) shows that Canada's aviation industry may face a large-scale shortage of personnel in the next decade. By 2035, the manpower gap in Canada's aviation industry is expected to be between 42,000 and 55,000.
The report pointed out that the aging of aviation professionals and the continued growth of the industry are the two key factors leading to manpower shortages. Affected positions include pilots, engineers, flight attendants, air traffic controllers, flight dispatchers and other core positions.
To meet this challenge, Alberta AAC launched an important talent training program to address the shortage of key labor in Alberta's aviation sector. The program received funding of 1.5 million Canadian dollars.
Not only in Canada, the global aviation industry has been facing a shortage of talent for many years. Pilots, aircraft maintenance personnel and air traffic controllers are some of the most affected positions. Boeing predicts that the world will need 716,000 new aviation maintenance technicians in the next 20 years, with about a third of them concentrated in North America.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the United States currently trains only 60% of the new maintenance personnel it needs each year. According to Statista, North American airlines will need about 130,000 new pilots in the next 20 years.
Attracting the younger generation to the aviation industry is becoming increasingly difficult, mainly due to a number of factors. High training and education costs are one of the main obstacles, and the industry is often seen in the public mind as having high work pressure and difficult work-life balance, which also discourages many potential job seekers. At the same time, the aviation industry also faces fierce competition from other industries (especially the technology industry), which often offer more flexible working models, higher starting salaries and faster promotion paths.
Currently, there is a shortage of air traffic controllers in Canada, which has caused flight delays and cancellations, especially at busy airports such as Vancouver. Nav Canada, the private company responsible for the national air traffic control system, has acknowledged the problem and is responding to the challenge by increasing recruitment and expanding training programs.
In recent years, the US air traffic control sector has also faced a serious shortage of personnel. The FAA currently employs about 14,000 controllers. Last year, the agency recruited more than 1,800 new air traffic controllers, the highest number in nearly a decade, and plans to further expand recruitment this year.
Recently, Washington Reagan National Airport in the United States has also encountered a serious shortage of staff, and the existing air traffic controllers have to implement a "six-day work week" to maintain operations. The FAA said it is aware of this problem and is confident that it can be resolved as soon as possible. According to reports, Washington Reagan National Airport currently has only two air traffic controllers less than the standard configuration.