Retirement at age 70
#61
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Aug 2010
Posts: 2,530
Each persons perspective depends upon where they came from and where they currently sit. I think it would be eye opening during this discussion to have each poster identify their specific background (40 year old regional F/O or 27 year old major airline F/O, for example), to determine their individual motivations. Those who have been "lucky" (3 years from CFI to major, for example), certainly have a different take than those who were furloughed 3 times and not nearly as "lucky" as the former.
Shouldn't "luck" be taken out of, or at least mitigated, the equation when it comes to a career as a pro pilot?
Shouldn't "luck" be taken out of, or at least mitigated, the equation when it comes to a career as a pro pilot?
#62
Look guys...forget about all of this age 70 airline pilot stuff. It ain`t gonna happen. I considered myself as one of the best around. Now at age 73, I go to the basement and forget why I`m down there. Half of my friends are dead or on the sick list. I just spent 8 days in the hospital and feel lucky that I`m still breathing. You youngsters have nothing to worry about from the "over 65 crowd".
#64
I'll vote for whoever makes it their main stance to bring the age back to 60.
Every pilot who voluntarily works past 60 now is forcing the pilots who follow them to work past 60 just to get to where they would've been originally. Age 65 (or 70) is allowing a completely selfish group of pilots spend more years at the top on the backs of all the pilots below them, while they spent their entire career benefiting from the retirements of those ahead of them at 60.
Who wants to work to 70 anyways? Not me! I'd rather not die from old age in a hotel, on a layover, or in an airline cockpit.
Maybe its time for an anti-Part 121 Age 60+ pilot movement. Single these people out and most importantly, those who pushed for the change. Sometimes it is hard to decide if ALPA is a union or an enemy. And to the 60+ers: your selfishness and inability to plan for the future is not my fault and I shouldn't have to pay for it.
Every pilot who voluntarily works past 60 now is forcing the pilots who follow them to work past 60 just to get to where they would've been originally. Age 65 (or 70) is allowing a completely selfish group of pilots spend more years at the top on the backs of all the pilots below them, while they spent their entire career benefiting from the retirements of those ahead of them at 60.
Who wants to work to 70 anyways? Not me! I'd rather not die from old age in a hotel, on a layover, or in an airline cockpit.
Maybe its time for an anti-Part 121 Age 60+ pilot movement. Single these people out and most importantly, those who pushed for the change. Sometimes it is hard to decide if ALPA is a union or an enemy. And to the 60+ers: your selfishness and inability to plan for the future is not my fault and I shouldn't have to pay for it.
My selfish inability to plan on a 4 year furlough and upon my return find wages cut in half, no pension and no upward movement. Get yourself some more facts about some of us that are going to be working past 60. There are a lot of guys that didn't get hired until our 40s and when you cut out 4 years, lower wages, no pension - YES we'll be working past 60. Also either way (age 60 mandatory or not) it is highly unlikely I will make the left seat after a 20+ year airline career. And, who are you to judge anyone else's decision just because your upward movement has stagnated - just looking for a scapegoat.
Grow up and stop whining.
#65
Banned
Joined APC: Jun 2008
Position: A320 Cap
Posts: 2,282
The problem with that is there is simply no way to screen for the age-related inevitable. If you allow a "fly til you die" system and then try to backstop it with medical and proficiency testing, unless you test every single day for both, you won't catch problems until after it is too late. Age 60 and even more for age 65, pilots well past not only their peak but what is safe in our operating environments continue to plow ahead and test the system's numerous other built in safety layers. The fact is cognitive/reflexive abilities as well as basic medical issues that have serious effects on safety, many of which can be categorized as fairly rapid onset and all of which are strongly correlated with age, makes an age related cutoff completely justifiable. We try and balance it with "fairness" and yes even economic reasons, but in the end not coming up with an age cutoff number is irresponsible and a threat to safety.
You simply can not catch every indivual pilot's cognitive/reflexive/medical cutoff in a system where you abolish a mandatory retirement age. Age 65, which should be 60 but was changed for purely political reasons, is still a vital backstop to the inevitable human race against the realities of aging and there is no system even possible that can accurately and reliably catch the increased threat correlated with age on a daily basis.
You simply can not catch every indivual pilot's cognitive/reflexive/medical cutoff in a system where you abolish a mandatory retirement age. Age 65, which should be 60 but was changed for purely political reasons, is still a vital backstop to the inevitable human race against the realities of aging and there is no system even possible that can accurately and reliably catch the increased threat correlated with age on a daily basis.
#66
Consider this, a 70 year old captain taking off at LGA in a blizzard with gusting winds, after a 1:30 taxi, and return to deice again, looses and engine at V1. Who will wind up going in the river ? The 70 year old captain or the 28 year old captain ? Experience is one thing to consider, but more importantly, who has the better reflex to abort the takeoff the quickest and avoiding a swim in the east river ?
#68
Google some how didn't pay attention to "funny commercial" "doctor with big hands" "funny" "awkward" and just latched on to "rectal exam."
Thank goodness I didn't google prostate check.
Actually, you picked the wrong age for the young captain - shouldn't have any 28 year old captains (not enough experience) just like we shouldn't have 28 year old brain surgeons. It's up to each person to decide if he can handle the job not some arbitrary age and only in the flying profession.
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