The top 10 most-read Air Cargo World articles in 2018

#7: FedEx rolls out ‘Purple Runway’ training program in face of pilot shortage

Over the years, any stories involving labor negotiations for pilots have proven wildly interesting to readers, so when we posted this April 3 piece on a FedEx-sponsored pilot training program, named Purple Runway, to address the coming pilot shortage, readers responded in droves.

Purple Runway, in conjunction with two U.S.-based feeder operators for FedEx, Empire Airlines and Mountain Air Cargo, was created to recruit pilots in training from universities and aviation colleges, and to ensure that the carrier will have a steady stream of talent in a market in which qualified pilots are increasingly scarce.

While few details about the program were shared in the April article, FedEx said in October that it was dedicating US$2.5 million to the Purple Runway Aviation Scholarship program to help mentor college students interested in piloting careers at FedEx and to help pay the costs of flight training. The funds were made available to participants from the University of Memphis, Delta State University, University of North Dakota, Indiana State University, Tennessee College of Applied Technology and Arkansas State University Mid-South.