Chinese navy tries to address pilot shortage by widening recruitment drive to postgraduates

In the recently announced recruitment plan for 2024, the People’s Liberation Army Navy has for the first time extended recruitment to candidates expected to receive a postgraduate degree next year. This follows a decision to include university graduates in this year’s programme.

The move extends the maximum recruitment age for naval pilot cadets from 24 to 26 for postgraduate students.

“As the mission and tasks of the Navy continue to expand and our strategic transformation accelerates, the demand for high-quality military personnel has become increasingly urgent,” the navy said.

“We warmly welcome participation from young students who are dedicated to national defence, committed to the sea and air, and with excellent qualities.”

Earlier this year, the PLA navy enrolled about 4,500 junior high school students – aged 15 to 16 – in a three-year youth aviation school programme to prepare them to take part in a selection process for training at the Naval Aviation University in Shandong province.

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Women were also included in the 2023 selection process, but the next year’s scheme will only consider male candidates, according to the navy’s recruitment notice.

Next year’s graduate and postgraduate applicants must be in line to receive their degrees in 2024, and major in science, technology or engineering, according to the notice.

Candidates must be between 1.65 and 1.85 metres (5ft4-6ft) in height, weigh over 52kg (114lb), and have a healthy body mass index and good eyesight.

They also must not have needed to repeat academic years, been suspended from class from more than six months and have clean political and criminal records.

The selection process will take place between November and April, with successful candidates then beginning a three to four-year training programme at the Naval Aviation University.

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The PLA Navy has been rapidly expanding and is now the world’s largest fleet by number of ships.

However, the navy’s development is being held back by a lack of fully trained pilots – a problem that affects both the carrier groups and land-based naval aircraft squadrons.

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