busdriver12

They are full of crap. Believe it when you see the actual retirement FCIF and that they are off the schedule. Otherwise, there have been two guys I saw retire this year at 56 and 59, some that are supposedly retiring a little before 65, on Dec 31st to get the bonus, but most of them are retiring at 65 years, 0 months.

Only believe it when you see it. If they're going out early, it's usually medical.

MaxKts

Aren't you just a ray of sunshine today! 😜

switch monkey

Bwahahahaha! Thanks, I needed that. Been here 10yrs. Less than 50% in right seat of widebody. You hear guys talking, then there's the truth. Most guys (90% guesstimate), stay till 65. Take it for what you paid for it ,😜

PostalAV8B

I tend to take a man for his word. The average age of those who told me that were retiring early was around 62 years old. These early retirements allegedly will take place in a few years when they reach 25 years with the company. Guess I will standby and see what happens. Cheers!!!

Red Letter

So, here are the numbers from a very accurate list that is a few months old (does not contain the absolute latest info, but close enough for this purpose):

208 retirees this year
90 will retire before 12/31 (81 were age 65, therefore 38.9%)
118 will retire on 12/31 (none are age 65)
Average age of all: 63.5995
Average age of those retiring 12/31: 62.8462
Youngest: 56.6
Longest Service: 39.7
Shortest Service: 11.75
>30 YOS (years of service): 69!
25 or more YOS: 124 (59.6%)
<25 YOS: 83
<20 YOS: 36
<15 YOS: 9


No, I will not provide the list, because it contains too much personal information.

It should also be noted that there are many Captains that are not planning on giving a notice, for a variety of reasons. They obviously will not show up in the numbers above. 100% of the ones I have spoken with are between 58-62.

busdriver12

Hey, I'm just calling it as I see it. I don't believe anything until I see it. Believe switchmonkey when he says, "You hear guys talking, then there's the truth".

Those age 58-62 year old pilots that are telling Red Letter they're retiring soon? Yeah, well, once again, believe it when it actually happens. Hey, I used to think I was going to retire at 55, but as it approaches, well....maybe 57, okay age 60, max. Who knows, maybe I'll be one of those people declaring my early retirement, and get kicked out screaming and yelling at age 65. Hope not

MacGuy2

Why don't you do one of those polls (on APC) and see what the retirement ages have been over the past 3-5 years. I retired last December, the day I turned 63. Would have retired a year earlier but was waiting for the new contract to give me the A-Plan bump. That obviously didn't quite work out as planned.

MG2

busdriver12

Congratulations, you are one of the rare ones! I don't hold it against people waiting till 65 to retire, though I do roll my eyes when I hear about how someone claims they are retiring early....really they are. Okay, maybe. I also think it's going to get tougher for people to retire early. It was one thing when people were stretching to make their high five, but now when they are making much more money, to take the hit and go down to 130K would be tough. For the people who have managed to invest well/pay off debt, that's awesome, I hope to join them.

MacGuy2

You know I thought that it would be tough going from well over $300K on the 777 to actually only about $100K. (Making a bit of a financial "donation" to an ex-wife.) But my home(s) are paid off and money is tucked away for my kid to finish college with. I'm actually living pretty comfortably on just over $6K (take-home) per month. I haven't even tapped into other investments, 401K and B-Plan (now rolled into an IRA). My health insurance premiums are being paid from the "good deal" VEBA fund. But if you can avoid shedding you spouse and the costs that go with it and pay down your debt, you'll be living in high cotton on the A-Plan alone. YMMV!

MG2

busdriver12

Yeah, I guess if you have everything paid off, even your house, and expenses are low, you can swing it. Taxes go way down. Otherwise, leaving your peak earning years and going down to 1/3-1/4 of your salary....painful. People don't want to have to cut back on their lifestyle massively when they retire, that's the time to travel and have fun. However, it would be good to retire while you are still healthy and stay active. It's a tough call, because you can't undo it. I wish the choice was clear.

Actually, this is pretty off topic, on a thread about hiring. Though I suppose retirement does relate, in some way. Someone should start a thread about retirement.....deciding when to retire as a FedEx pilot.