The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has issued a federal mandate requiring all commercial airlines to adopt merit-based hiring for pilots, explicitly prohibiting the consideration of race or sex in recruitment. The directive, formalized through a new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Operations Specification (OpSpec), compels carriers to certify they have ended any diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices in pilot selection. Non-compliance may trigger federal investigations.
Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy stated the measure ensures passengers fly with the most qualified pilots. “The American people don’t care what their pilot looks like or their gender – they just care that they are the most qualified man or woman for the job,” he said. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford framed the rule as a safety imperative, noting that pilot competency, not personal characteristics, determines the ability to operate aircraft safely.
The mandate follows heightened scrutiny of aviation hiring practices after a fatal midair collision in January involving an American Airlines regional jet and an Army helicopter, which killed 67 people. President Donald Trump quickly attributed the disaster to DEI hiring practices at the FAA, alleging they were inherited from the prior administration. While the FAA has since eliminated its internal DEI offices, the DOT asserts that allegations of airlines using race or sex in hiring persist. The new OpSpec aims to enforce transparency and accountability from airlines directly.
This action is part of a broader administration effort to eliminate DEI programs across federal agencies and regulated sectors. Recently, the Department of Defense announced a comprehensive review of small business contracts, which Secretary Pete Hegseth called a long-standing DEI initiative prone to fraud.
Airlines must now formally certify adherence to the merit-based hiring requirement. The policy shift represents a significant regulatory change in pilot recruitment, emphasizing standardized competency assessments and elevating aviation safety standards as the primary hiring criterion across the industry.
