The State Duma adopted in the first reading a bill allowing foreign pilots to work for Russian airlines. agency reported this on Tuesday, March 11 The Interfax .

The bill gives foreigners the right to work in Russian civil aviation in any position, including as an aircraft commander. It is expected that, first of all, Russian companies will hire foreigners in this capacity, since the most acute shortage of personnel is observed in this area. The need for first pilots is estimated at 200 people, while there are enough second pilots in the country.

All foreign applicants for employment will have to submit a certificate of no criminal record from the law enforcement agencies of their country, a medical report, information about the raid, and also confirm knowledge of the Russian language if he intends to work on domestic lines in Russia. The requirements for applicants for the position of aircraft commanders will be determined by the government.

According to the authors of the bill, its adoption will eliminate the shortage of qualified personnel in the industry and speed up the process of training our own first pilots through the exchange of experience with foreign specialists. It is expected that as a result, by 2019 Russian civil aviation will no longer need to attract personnel from abroad. In this regard, the bill, if adopted, will be valid only until January 1, 2019.

It is expected that foreign personnel will be hired primarily in Kazakhstan and Belarus. There, senior flight personnel receive monthly from five to six thousand dollars, while in Russia - from 12 to 25 thousand dollars.

According to the Ministry of Transport, Russian airlines now require about a thousand more personnel in addition to 200 aircraft commanders. Such indicators are due to the growth of air transport volumes in Russia by 13-15 percent per year, which is why the industry annually requires replenishment of approximately 1,100-1,200 people. At the same time, the number of cadets enrolled in flight schools in 2013 was 625 people.

The State Duma allowed foreign pilots to work in Russia