Were aircraft plummeting in 1958 solely because of the age of the pilot? If so, the Age 60 rule should be lauded as a tremendous benefit to safety. If not, it should be seen for what it is.
The accident rate for Pt. 121 carriers was higher in 1958 than it is now. I can't prove that it was solely due to the Age 60 restriction, and you can't prove it wasn't.
How can you quantify the degree of safety that would be degraded by allowing 65 year-olds to act as PIC?
I can't, and I haven't tried to. (You need to pay better attention!) I have pointed out the factors that make changing the age problematic. They are two issues that can't be ignored: Standards and Self-certification.
What is the evidence that in other countries and in other types of flight operations, that the bulk of accidents are age-related?
1. "
Other types of flight operations" is not germane. The traveling public doesn't care what the Zimbabwe Air Force's accident record is, or the number of fatal mishaps suffered by French ag pilots. They aren't sitting in the back of one of those aircraft.
2. US operated Pt. 121 airline travel is the safest mode of transportation in our solar system. Period. I contend that it is the safest because we have the most stringent regulations and restrictions. I believe Age 60 is just such a restriction. It's hard to argue with success. Are you sure you still want to?
Why demand the burden of proof now, even though it would be an acceptable risk.
You are not the "decider". You don't get to guess if the risk is "acceptable" for everyone. There is an agency in place that determines risk for the traveling public. Since it's the safest form of travel around, it appears their ideology is working properly.
Why not allow the travelling public to decide if they feel it is safe for them to fly with 60+ pilots or choose a carrier that does not employ such pilots.
You're kidding, right? If not, you should have your body cryogenically frozen so it can be defrosted in 100-years, when hopefully they've discovered a cure for
Sudden Stupid Statement Syndrome.
Are you the self-appointed gaurdian for them as well?
On the flights where I'm the PIC, you bet yer hiney! (And it wasn't so much I was "
self-appointed", I think it was more like King Arthur and Excaliber...it was my destiny)
Medical technology has improved and increased the lifespan of millions.
We're not talking about lifespan! We're talking about
reflexes and
cognitive ability. And let me repeat, both of them degrade as we age...no exceptions!
Cholesterol lowering medication, diabetes medication, blood pressure medications have staved off or reversed much of what caused the average life expectancy in 1958 to be 67 years. Now we are looking at average life expectancies approaching 80.
Each of those items addresses conditions that can be clinically measured and have a minimum/maximum standard in place. There are no minimum standards for reflexes and cogintive ability...nor are their non-subjective tests to measure them.
If it could be proven that periodic cognitive testing would enhance safety, then it might be considered.
Ok, now I KNOW you're not paying attention! Testing to
what standard? What is the absolute minimum cognitive ability you can have and still fly an airliner safely? It's not exactly like measuring blood lipids or visual acuity.
If there was evidence that a pilot was suffering from dementia in the cockpit, it would be the moral responsibility of his fellow crewmembers to restrict him from the flight deck and notify the appropriate authorities.
Was that a joke? It is the moral and
legal responsibility of the airman himself/herself to self-certify that he/she is fit for duty. The safety of our passengers should not depend on the ability of another crewmember to tell if the other pilot is processing data a little too slowly.
If this became commonplace, perhaps the FAA could justify a retirement age where these episodes no longer occurred. If it did not become commonplace, then the advocates of the elimination of a discriminatory law would be vindicated, albeit many years too late.
Good one! Using that logic, we should have manadatory alcohol testing of all pilots prior to every flight because we've had several incidents where pilots self-certified they weren't drunk...yet they were. (Not to worry...in each case the fellow crewmembers exercised their
moral responsibility and turned them in....right?)
