My brother is a retied pilot (AA) but trained as a pilot in the navy. He left the navy to take a job with AA - many, many years ago. He claims that in those days employment for the airlines as a pilot had salary and benefits far superior to the navy's, but that is no longer true. So the pipeline for trained pilots from the military that the airlines used to enjoy no longer exists. He also claims that the Covid funds allotted to private employers to avoid laying people off were used by the airlines to retire the more senior higher-paid pilots early. If true (he's not always the most reliable source) it's incredibly aggravating to think our tax dollars helped to create the pilot shortage that now has us paying higher air fares.