Shortage of Air Force fighter pilots grows: The U.S. Air Force says it is short on fighter pilots and the deficit is growing.
At the end of fiscal year 2016, the Air Force was short 750 fighter pilots, up from 511 at the end of the previous year.
The Air Force's Air Combat Command said while there is a pilot shortage for all its platforms, fighter aircraft have been hit the hardest by the shortage.
"The health of the fighter pilot community is bad," said Lt. Gen. Chris Nowland, Air Force deputy chief of staff for operations, plans and requirements (AF/A3). "We focus on fighter pilots, but it's not just (them). We have a national pilot crisis. Essentially the Air Force, when it comes to pilot production, is going to have to change."
