‘Don’t want a diversity hire at the yoke’: Feds order airlines to hire pilots based on merit, not ideology
The federal government has ordered that airlines must hire their pilots based on their merit, their experience, knowledge and ability to fly their airplanes and not ideology.
A commentary at RedState praised the move, explaining passengers, “don’t want a diversity hire at the yoke of that airplane; we want the best pilot money can buy, regardless of skin tone or plumbing. Now, the Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are taking steps to ensure that we get just that.”
Ensuring the highest safety standards in aviation, new directives require airlines to certify pilots based solely on merit. ALPA stands by our uncompromising training standards—qualification is all that matters. #AviationSafety #MeritBasedhttps://t.co/ZwCxnNA7bZ pic.twitter.com/haf4YK08Dw
— HR Grapevine News (@HRGrapevine) February 17, 2026
The Department of Transportation has just issued a new mandatory regulation for airlines:
Pilots must be hired on the basis of merit.
Pilots must have sufficient cognitive aptitude (based), technical knowledge, and flight experience, or they cannot be hired.
This is very good. pic.twitter.com/WjM8YUqJOw
— Crémieux (@cremieuxrecueil) February 13, 2026
Since 2000, women and minorities, who make up less than 10% of all pilots, were factors in 66% of crashes caused by pilot error.
Despite the disparity, major airlines are continuing to hire on the basis of identity rather than merit.
In January 2025, Delta CLO Peter Carter said… pic.twitter.com/iSujvTpDFi
— AF Post (@AFpost) January 26, 2026
The announcement is part of the war on “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” agenda hires by the administration of President Donald Trump.
It was Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy who said airlines that don’t formally commit to merit-based hiring will be subject to FAA investigation.
“When families board their aircraft, they should fly with confidence knowing the pilot behind the controls is the best of the best. The American people don’t care what their pilot looks like or their gender—they just care that they are most qualified man or woman for the job,” Duffy said in a prepared statement. “Safety drives everything we do, and this commonsense measure will increase transparency between passengers and airlines.”
According to Fox, the FAA under President Trump has mocked the practices of Joe Biden while he was in the White House, saying the agency at that time adopted “absurd” processes.
The report said, “The president targeted DEI at the FAA in particular following a tragic plane crash in the nation’s capital last year that saw a passenger plane collide with a U.S. military helicopter over the Potomac River.”
Trump’s statement said, “We must have only the highest standards for those who work in our aviation system.”