Many air forces share the same problem. It spends years and a small fortune turning a young officer into a military pilot, and then an airline offers that pilot a better salary and a calmer life. Austria has decided to stop fighting the airlines and share its pilots with one instead.
On 28 September 2026, two pilots of the Austrian Armed Forces (Bundesheer), one helicopter pilot and one jet pilot, began type rating training on the Airbus A320 at Austrian Airlines. From 2028, if the trial works, they will spend half of every year in a military cockpit and the other half flying passengers around Europe.
Informations clés
- Partenaires: Austrian Armed Forces Air Force (Luftstreitkräfte) and Austrian Airlines
- Started: 28 September 2026, A320 type rating training
- Participants: Two military pilots: one helicopter pilot, one jet pilot
- Training complete: Summer 2027, followed by line flying at Austrian
- From 2028: November to April with the Bundesheer, May to October with Austrian Airlines
- But: Keep trained military pilots in service for around ten more years
- Review: The Bundesheer will evaluate the trial after the first season
Summers at Austrian, Winters in Uniform
The model is simple. According to Austrian Wings, the pilots will fly for the Bundesheer from November to April and for Austrian Airlines from May to October. The split matches the rhythm of both employers. Austrian Airlines needs extra crews for its busy summer schedule, and the military keeps its pilots through the rest of the year.
Getting there takes less than it might seem. Military pilots in Austria already earn their fixed-wing licences during basic flying training, so the main step to the airline cockpit is the A320 type rating. That training should be finished in summer 2027, after which the two pilots will start flying on Austrian Airlines' regular network.
Why the Bundesheer Wants This
The point is retention. Austrian military pilots currently commit to at least eight years of service. After that, they are free to leave, and many take their skills to civil aviation. Under the new model, they would keep flying for the Bundesheer for at least six months a year for roughly another ten years.
For a small air force, that is a big deal. Austria flies a compact fleet of Eurofighters, trainers, transports and helicopters, and every experienced pilot who leaves takes years of training with them. The Bundesheer says the arrangement should also help it build up a pool of militia, or reserve, pilots.
An Austrian Eurofighter pilot explains the long road to becoming an operational military pilot. Video: Österreichs Bundesheer.
A Test, Not Yet a Programme
This is a trial. The two pilots are meant to show whether the model works in practice, and the air force will review it after the first season. If it does work, Austria will have found an unusual answer to a problem that many air forces try to solve with retention bonuses: instead of competing with the airline, cooperate with it.
Sources: aeroTELEGRAPH, Austrian Wings, Heute, oe24, Österreichs Bundesheer
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