Age 60 informal poll

[pilotyip]

Young and healthy are not necessarily universal, the trend may favor the younger, but there are many cases where this does not apply. At age 63 I know my BP, HR and ability still run an 8 minute mile, far surpass the condition and abilities of many of my younger cohorts. Bring on the enhanced medicals, thin out the ranks of the younger quicker.

 

[Sonny Crockett]

Undaunted Idiot....

Please tell me your Ego is really not that big?

 

[UndauntedFlyer]

Please tell me your Ego is really not that big?

Ego? What ego?

I'm really a very normal family man and a caring person.

And I might mention that I have helped many others in this profession while I continue to do so.

 

[Sonny Crockett]

Ego? What ego?

My point exactly......

 

[Freight Dog]

Wow! You've really gone off the deep end, Captain.

Let me dissect this garbage a little bit for your highness, Captain:

I was a captain on the same equipment as Klako. Were my passengers disserviced due to me only having had 1,000 hours in type when I upgraded?

Let's see... at Klako's airline, you have FO's with 2-3,000 hours in type that are significantly younger, and that also had the privilege of flying with CAPTAIN Klako. Are you suggesting they are unsafe to be captains, Captain?

I also think you owe Comair pilot group an apology for your disrespectful, egotistical, self-serving, WRONG analysis, Captain. Are you above NTSB too, Captain? We are definitely lucky to be blessed with your presence in our industry, Captain.

Cali accident was lack of experience, Captain? Wow...

Captain, did you know that you received an autostow of your speedbrake when you advance the throttles as a result of this accident? Of course you knew that, Captain.

Just for your entertainment, Captain.... here's the crew quals:


Pilot In Command First Officer
Age 57 39
Date of Birth 11/17/38 6/24/56
Date of Hire with American Airlines 9/22/69 10/11/86
First Class Medical Certificate Issued 12/7/95

5

Approximate Total Flying Time 13,000 hrs 5,800 hrs
Total on Type (B757/B767) 2,260 hrs 2,286 hrs
Total hrs last 90 Days 182: 13 163 :40
Total hrs last 60 Days 104: 14 101 :55
Total hrs last 30 Days 60:13 19:50
Total Last 7 Days 12:19 13:22
Accident Flight hrs (est.) 4:38 4:38
Hours On Duty Prior to Accident 5:58 5:58
Hours Off Duty Prior to Work Period 120+ (5 days) 120+(5 days)

Inexperienced crew, Captain? Yeah, they crashed because they didn't have you in the cockpit, right? 57 year old captain though.... hmmm. Shouldn't he have prevented this accident? I'm sure if he was 64, the outcome would have been different, right Captain? No, wait. It's because you weren't there to save the day, Captain.

Let's talk about LIT accident, Captain. Once again, you know better than the NTSB, Captain. They cited failure of the crew to discontinue the approach with fatigue being a major contributing factor. As you may not know, the captain was one of their chief pilots with only over 10,000 hours with only in excess of 5,500 hours in type. Highly inexperienced guy, right, Captain? The FO was a probie at a major airline... Good example, Captain!

The A300 accident in NYC. Another great example, Captain! The FO used excessive rudder inputs as a result of the quality training from American Airlines Advanced Maneuvering Course. Like I said, great example of the inexperienced crew, Captain... They just weren't blessed to have you in the left seat, Captain.

Man, I am surprised we're not all crashing around left and right because we're not blessed with your presence, Captain.

It's also funny how you bash your FO's, CAPTAIN.

My goodness, you are correct, Captain. We are all doomed when you are forced out, Captain. Thank you again for the opportunity to learn from the born 777 captain, Captain. The day you retire is going to be one of the darkest days in the U.S. airline industry, Captain.

I just hope you retire, as opposed to slumping over the controls Captain, because your FO will probably crash the plane because they are too inexperienced and unable to fly parallel visual to 28R in SFO or 35L at DEN, Captain.

Thank you for your 37 years of service, Captain.

Freight Dog: This just isn't so. The regional airline F/O's are all qualified but they all lack the experienced of their senior captains. Klako is a very experienced Regional captain and I'm sure his experience enhances safety to a great degree at his airline. If he has to retire, it will be a great loss to the passengers and their safety. Experience comes one day at a time and it can not be obtained any faster than that. The LEX accident was the result of a lack of experience. The Calie accident was from a lack of experience. The LIT accident was from a lack of experience. The A300 accident in NYC was from a lack of experience. And not long ago my two F/O's were fully ready to allow me to taxi to and takeoff from a runway that was too short. The reason: A lack of experience and knowledge regarding the fact that the last portion of that runway was closed for construction. It was the experience of a senior captain that prevented what could have been a serious situation. Just the other day, I chose to fly the leg to SFO because I was well aware of the possibility of flying close parallel visuals to the 28’s. And sure enough it was just that. My formation experience told me that the guy in the left seat must fly that approach to 28R. Then there was the visual approach to 35L at DEN, when my international F/O lined up on the left side for the 34’s. All of these situations demonstrate crew concept and how it is experience that counts more than anything else.

So let me say this for certain: EXPERIENCE COUNTS, AND THERE IS NOTHING ELSE LIKE IT THAT WILL ENHANCE SAFETY TO SUCH A DEGREE.

 

[Sonny Crockett]

Undaunted Flyer is NOT speaking for the UAL pilot group.


I am ashamed of his comments and hope you all understand that every Village has an idiot.

 

[Whine Lover]

Yes, but he is an EXPERIENCED Idiot.

YKW

P.S.- AND, he's a CAPTAIN. Show some respect Mister, or I will whip out MY Captain's I.D. and throttle you with it.

 

[Whine Lover]

"...your FO will probably crash the plane because they are too inexperienced and unable to fly parallel visual to 28R in SFO or 35L at DEN, Captain. "


That is correct.


UNLESS...They have "formation experience".



YKW

 

[Flopgut]

Freight Dog: This just isn't so. The regional airline F/O's are all qualified but they all lack the experienced of their senior captains. Klako is a very experienced Regional captain and I'm sure his experience enhances safety to a great degree at his airline. If he has to retire, it will be a great loss to the passengers and their safety. Experience comes one day at a time and it can not be obtained any faster than that. The LEX accident was the result of a lack of experience. The Calie accident was from a lack of experience. The LIT accident was from a lack of experience. The A300 accident in NYC was from a lack of experience. And not long ago my two F/O's were fully ready to allow me to taxi to and takeoff from a runway that was too short. The reason: A lack of experience and knowledge regarding the fact that the last portion of that runway was closed for construction. It was the experience of a senior captain that prevented what could have been a serious situation. Just the other day, I chose to fly the leg to SFO because I was well aware of the possibility of flying close parallel visuals to the 28’s. And sure enough it was just that. My formation experience told me that the guy in the left seat must fly that approach to 28R. Then there was the visual approach to 35L at DEN, when my international F/O lined up on the left side for the 34’s. All of these situations demonstrate crew concept and how it is experience that counts more than anything else.

So let me say this for certain: EXPERIENCE COUNTS, AND THERE IS NOTHING ELSE LIKE IT THAT WILL ENHANCE SAFETY TO SUCH A DEGREE.

I completely disagree with you. Klako states earlier in this thread that he has applied for numerous jobs as age 60 retirement gets closer and admits no one wants to hire him. Interesting. He has all that experience but can't get a job...Why would that be? Because Klako doesn't compare favorably with the kind of pilots that have been furloughed, marginalized or are otherwise competeing for jobs. If he was that great, there would be a job looking for him! Could he get re-hired for the job he has now? I don't know. I'm sure they probably like him. I'm sure he is competent and safe; but could he get hired out of the existing pool of candidates? Doesn't sound like it!

I can't stand this debate. It's just like the guys who crossed the picket line. Personal need overwhelms ANYTHING else. You'll fabricate whatever rational is necessary as soon as you get your way.

 

[UndauntedFlyer]

Experience is gained one day at a time. Experience may be gained even when you're not flying such as from reading accident reports or reports of the mistakes of others or from the mistakes of your own. It even helps to read the posts on FI.

From the LEX accident we are reminded of the mistakes of rushing to get airborne instead of slowing down to look things over, rechecking and reconfirming everything. From the Cali accident we learn, most importantly, of the need to carefully manage the FMS and question any clearance of which we are uncertain. While the failure to retract the speed brakes promptly was a factor, that was not the cause. From the A300 accident we learn to be cautious of information that sounds contrary to everything we know about structures. So called experts are not always correct in the information they put out. And from the LIT accident we learn to not accept an extension of the duty day to the point of assignments that will result in serious fatigue. If you're too tired to fly, don’t. And finally, are you suggesting that flight managers are some of the best pilots?

Now regarding my colleagues and F/O's that I fly with. All do a great job and we always work as a team, helping each other and catching each others mistakes. I catch no more of theirs than they do of mine. In fact, I will say that they do seem to catch more of mine, and I am grateful to have their help. My point in the examples I have presented is that experience counts in a major way.

Using SFO as an example: I had an F/O flying the 28R visual and we happened to be very close to the parallel visual traffic on 28L. We were so close that he said he just couldn't see the traffic from his position and asked me to fly the rest of the way in. That was good judgment on his part. When I fly from LAX to SFO, assuming we will probably land 28L, I always try to have the F/O fly that leg so he can get a better view in order to provide the visual separation. Does this make any sense to you I must ask? Of course the decisions here are made from experience and have nothing to do with the skill level of captains or f/o’s.

Regarding the DEN arrivals, from my own mistakes, I am always prepared and ready for the confusion that exists between the East and West parallel 34/35 runways and the same is certainly true in LAX. This is called experience and it enables us to make so few mistakes that the airline safety record is incredible considering the number of departures and arrivals that occur each day.

So in the end, I am certain that if KALKO retires on his 60th birthday as a highly experienced captain, or if I retire or any other captain with all that experience gained over probably 40 years of aviation, it will not be safer, it will only be missing some of the most experienced pilots who may possibly be able to prevent their flights from falling into the many traps that can arise in day to day flying.

Now, does anyone really believe that by having our most experienced pilots retire while in what I believe to be the peak of their career, replaced by a new hire starting at the bottom of the pile, that that will make the world safer for the traveling public? I certainly think not and it is the majority of the ARC comments that agree with my view.

And that is why the age 60 rule will soon change. As I have said, I may make the cut and I may not, but in either case the rule will be changing sooner rather than later. Does anyone really disagree with this?