Lobby for Age 70!

[mamba20]

old guys go away. You knew you had to retire at age 60 and were given a gift by our idiot ex president. you don't get anymore. you've screwed enough lives up with your greed. Go away, time to pass the torch to a younger generation.

 

[Truckdriver]

One level of medical for all. If you want to up the standards, fine. But don't start whining when YOU lose YOUR medical at 45 because you don't measure up.

We don't have one level of medical right now so I don't think we should under a new system either. You know as well as anyone else that as you age your phycical and mental capabilities deteriorate. Some much sooner and at a much faster rate than others. That decline does not appear in most people until after age 50, some don't see any decline until into their 70's. I think that cognitive skills tests should be administered to anyone over age 50. It is no different than the current EKG policy which doesn't require guys under 35 to do them because they are worthless if your under that age just like cognitive skills tests are no good for guys under 50.

The problem we have now is the FAA medical is really only a test for blood pressure, hearing, EKG (which in most cases shows nothing important as far as predicting incapacitation), and vision. And even with that, you can still be a blind, deaf, walking heart attack time bomb and still get a 1st class medical. Now you can be a blind, deaf, walking heart attack time bomb that has very slow decision making abilities and needs a nap every 2 hours.

 

[pilotyip]

Until an extremely extensive cognitive and reflex test is done in order to pass a medical for these 60+ year old ancients, it would be foolhardy to increase this age yet again. Or even worse, have no limit at all. These old guys move like they are in slow motion, and their minds often times get like mush. They just can't respond appropriately in an at times, extremely fast paced and stressful environment.

Did we never have an-in-flight incapacitation prior to the age 65 rule? Was anything done then to reduce the age of a pilot? How about a rule we lower the retirement age to the age of the last pilot whom had the in-flight incapacitation. If he was 58 years old then that will be the new retirement. If the next guy is 48 that becomes the new retirement. That would really be the safest way to do it. Wouldn’t it? Age 60 was forced on the pilots back in 1958. ALPA was still fighting to get it repealed up until about 1970. This rule had nothing to do with safety; it was a deal between two W.W.II USAF Generals, AAL's C.R. Smith and Pete Quesada (sp.?) the first head of the FAA. It was to get rid of high paid pilots at the top of AAL the seniority list. It was done in the name of safety, because who can be against safety. It is like motherhood and patriotism.

If you cats think the Age 65 Rule is a burden, you should look at the ICAO signatories ... 13 of them have removed any age limitations.

I've been in the Middle Area and South America quite a bit these past three months and was astounded to learn and more and more ICAO signatory states are dropping age as a limit in total.

In 10 years, I bet, there will be no age limit in the U.S. Simply past the medical and (I believe) a cognative test.

So that's ok. At least for me. I'll square off with the best of em ... I'll work until I can't. It's not greed ... it's what I do.

TransMach

 

[chqflyer]

I wanna fly until they have to pry the yoke from my cold, dead fingers.



Not really. Entertaining thread though. Carry on!

 

[Gottafly74]

I wanna fly until they have to pry the yoke from my cold, dead fingers.



Not really. Entertaining thread though. Carry on!

Heard that one myself from a jumpseater IAH to EWR when I was a captain... Unfortunately he got his wish.. Not the way I wanna go!!

 

[Fubijaakr]

If you want cognative testing, then test EVERYONE. That's what I mean by one set of standards. Remember, when you tighten things up, perhaps YOU won't be able to pass.

 

[goahead]

Hi!

Pipejockey:

And, even with all the above liabilities, the pilots aged 60-65 have the safest accident record. So, what does that say about YOUR flying abilities?

You must have missed that stat class in college, grouping a very, very small group of guys isn't a comparision.

 

[Dumb Pilot]

You must have missed that stat class in college, grouping a very, very small group of guys isn't a comparision.

You must have missed geography class at college, age 65 have been around for a while all over the world, there are many pilots flying safely today over 60 years of age.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, this is only an issue due to the state of the industry today, if the airlines where hiring 80 pilots a month as before 9/11 you wouldn't hear a peep from anyone

 

[scoreboardII]

if the airlines where hiring 80 pilots a month as before 9/11 you wouldn't hear a peep from anyone

Which is what they would be doing if folks were retiring...

 

[Full of LUV]

Which is what they would be doing if folks were retiring...

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