FAA should think twice about not having a retirement rule in 135 flying

[fugazi]

I know most of you guys are a bunch of sensitive PC tree huggin liberals But, forget about these blue hairs; how about addressing the real problem?!?!WIA, that's right..Women in aviation. Theyre Less than 10% of the pilot force but, in more than 75% of accidents. Not to mention, think of all those empty kitchens and hungry husbands/life partners. Im sure a few are a good stick; I've never met one! Discuss.

 

[Sparse]

Here we go with another age battle.

I decided to look through the NTSB archives in accidents involving pilot incapacitation. Search included dates from 1993 to present and for the search criteria I just typed "pilot incapacitation". Reports involved all categories of aircraft including helicopters. I found over 50+ incidents of pilot incapacitation.

And what were the results? The vast majority of incidents showed pilots of the age 60+ dying in flight do to heart attacks and strokes. Many accidents sited undiagonsied issues. I'm glad the AME doctor "Dr. Handshake" does a great job. To bad the primary care doctors aren't used when you get older to find health issues. There was another sizable percentage of pilots over the age of 50 dying in flight. And how about the young pilots (under the age of 40)? Less than a handful. I guess the myth about older people not having health issues has been settled.

And this search doesn't include pilots of the age 60+ who were spatially disoriented, confused or using poor decision making (definitions used by the NTSB as contributing factors to an accident).

This is the stuff that keeps me up at night.

One accident that involves a pilot, who was 66, said to the controller "my defibrillator just went off on me."....the pilot declared "mayday" and reported that he was losing his eyesight.

Or the 64 year old instructor who had a seizure due to a brain swell from undiagnosed cancer. Sadly the NTSB concluded that his seizing body blocked the flight controls and the student was unable to recover the plane.

Speaking honestly and not humorously, I do worry about the guy sitting next to me who is in their late 60s. I hope he is healthy, that he isn't hiding health problems, and that he doesn't slump against the controls on short final if he passes.

Does the FAA deny that there is a problem or issue? Yes. I have been active in writing the FAA and senators about the issue. All the replies are that the FAA says pilots, regardless of age, are healthy, fit, and have no issues. They went on to say that elderly individuals as a whole have no problem with motor skills, memory, or cognitive activity. Going on, the FAA says that they will catch those who hide medical problems. Further, they say that they don't have any intention of ever having a retirement age for part 135 flying. I'm glad that the FAA doesn't have a "tombstone" mentality about regulating and that they read medical journals about aging individuals.

Again, not joking: We'll have to wait until a high profile accident that takes out a famous person or politician which involves pilots well over 65 to have any type of change. I can see it now: Wolf Blitzer in the Situation room running the story, "Elderly pilots flying high performance turbojets...are we safe"?

worrying about the guy across the aisle like this indicates to me you have a lack of confidence in your own abilities to handle the situation. I agree about your concerns if it is single pilot or an instructor, but two pilot operations go hand in hand with two engine operations. You have two for a reason. And your comment about elderly pilots flying high performance jet? I have 38 years experience flying high performance jets and I have to watch the young bucks like a hawk.

 

[OPECJet]

I know most of you guys are a bunch of sensitive PC tree huggin liberals But, forget about these blue hairs; how about addressing the real problem?!?!WIA, that's right..Women in aviation. Theyre Less than 10% of the pilot force but, in more than 75% of accidents. Not to mention, think of all those empty kitchens and hungry husbands/life partners. Im sure a few are a good stick; I've never met one! Discuss.

If she's not in the kitchen, she's not putting arsenic in my dinner.

I've flown with plenty of women. All but a couple were OK. Probably about the same "good stick" to "crash / violation looking for a place to happen" ratio.

I just don't let them drive the rental car.

 

[gunfyter]

AIG Chief Sees Retirement Age as High as 80 After Crisis

American International Group Inc. (AIG) Chief Executive Officer Robert Benmosche said Europe’s debt crisis shows governments worldwide must accept that people will have to work more years as life expectancies increase.
“Retirement ages will have to move to 70, 80 years old,” Benmosche, who turned 68 last week, said during a weekend interview at his seaside villa in Dubrovnik, Croatia. “That would make pensions, medical services more affordable. They will keep people working longer and will take that burden off of the youth.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-...etirement-age-as-high-as-80-after-crisis.html

 

[DirtyBeech]

I know most of you guys are a bunch of sensitive PC tree huggin liberals But, forget about these blue hairs; how about addressing the real problem?!?!WIA, that's right..Women in aviation. Theyre Less than 10% of the pilot force but, in more than 75% of accidents. Not to mention, think of all those empty kitchens and hungry husbands/life partners. Im sure a few are a good stick; I've never met one! Discuss.

And every one of them hands me the sammich while they take the salad when picking crew meals. It's genetics.