UndauntedFlyer
Ease the nose down
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2006
- Posts
- 1,062
On March 11, 2006, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) met and in a nearly unanimous vote, decided to increase the maximum age for airline pilots for ICAO member nations’ pilots from age-60 to age-65.
What that means is this: Effective November 23, 2006, the United States will be legally required to respect the new age-65 limitation and allow all foreign airline pilots from any member nation to operate in our airspace. Pilots over age-60 from ICAO member nations will be able to fly to and from all of our airports. Senior pilots from Canada, Mexico, China, Japan, Korea, Syria, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, India, Brazil and all European nations except France (France requires all workers to retire at 60), will have a right by United States law to fly into and throughout the United States, but US citizens who are the same age will not be able to fly at all. Instead of working for a living at their professions, our pilots that turn age-60 and are employed by U.S. airlines such as Southwest, Jet Blue, US Air, United, Delta, American and Northwest will all be grounded by FAA regulation. Pilots from all other countries will have a right to make a living flying to and from American airports but American pilots will have no such right. American pilots who are over age-60, no matter that they may be in excellent health, will instead probably become a burden on the government "guaranteed" and financially strapped PBGC as well as the Social Security system when they turn 62. This is all the result of a nearly 50-year old FAA regulation that hasn't keep pace with the rest of the world. Even though our pilots are just as healthy, among the world's best trained and far more experienced than any foreign pilot at flying into the most complex of U.S. airports, this outdated regulation still applies? Why should foreign pilots be allowed to fly into American airports to earn their livings when an American taxpaying family man can not do the same thing? No matter the politics, the principals of equal rights and laws against discrimination should apply here, especially for American’s over foreign workers that pay no U.S. taxes.
The airline pilots who are turning age-60 today and in the next few years are mostly former military veterans, many of whom flew combat missions over Vietnam in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s, some even fought in Desert Storm. That means that many of our most respected citizens, the military veterans who have fought for our country are being grounded every day by bureaucracy in government combined with a labor issue. The time for change on the age-60 rule is long overdue. Is anything at all owed to these Vietnam and Desert storm veterans?
There is now a wall, just like the Berlin Wall, that is dividing ALPA and it gets bigger and bigger every day with the loss of the US Air, United, Delta, and Northwest Airlines defined benefit programs. "A house divided against itself can not stand. It must become one thing or the other," A. Lincoln. The division can not stand, for if it does the Union will fall.
"Mr. Gorbechev, tear down this wall," R. Reagan. The Berlin Wall fell. Does anyone think the age-60 wall will stand? When will it fall?
Comments/questions.......
What that means is this: Effective November 23, 2006, the United States will be legally required to respect the new age-65 limitation and allow all foreign airline pilots from any member nation to operate in our airspace. Pilots over age-60 from ICAO member nations will be able to fly to and from all of our airports. Senior pilots from Canada, Mexico, China, Japan, Korea, Syria, Israel, Jordan, Pakistan, India, Brazil and all European nations except France (France requires all workers to retire at 60), will have a right by United States law to fly into and throughout the United States, but US citizens who are the same age will not be able to fly at all. Instead of working for a living at their professions, our pilots that turn age-60 and are employed by U.S. airlines such as Southwest, Jet Blue, US Air, United, Delta, American and Northwest will all be grounded by FAA regulation. Pilots from all other countries will have a right to make a living flying to and from American airports but American pilots will have no such right. American pilots who are over age-60, no matter that they may be in excellent health, will instead probably become a burden on the government "guaranteed" and financially strapped PBGC as well as the Social Security system when they turn 62. This is all the result of a nearly 50-year old FAA regulation that hasn't keep pace with the rest of the world. Even though our pilots are just as healthy, among the world's best trained and far more experienced than any foreign pilot at flying into the most complex of U.S. airports, this outdated regulation still applies? Why should foreign pilots be allowed to fly into American airports to earn their livings when an American taxpaying family man can not do the same thing? No matter the politics, the principals of equal rights and laws against discrimination should apply here, especially for American’s over foreign workers that pay no U.S. taxes.
The airline pilots who are turning age-60 today and in the next few years are mostly former military veterans, many of whom flew combat missions over Vietnam in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s, some even fought in Desert Storm. That means that many of our most respected citizens, the military veterans who have fought for our country are being grounded every day by bureaucracy in government combined with a labor issue. The time for change on the age-60 rule is long overdue. Is anything at all owed to these Vietnam and Desert storm veterans?
There is now a wall, just like the Berlin Wall, that is dividing ALPA and it gets bigger and bigger every day with the loss of the US Air, United, Delta, and Northwest Airlines defined benefit programs. "A house divided against itself can not stand. It must become one thing or the other," A. Lincoln. The division can not stand, for if it does the Union will fall.
"Mr. Gorbechev, tear down this wall," R. Reagan. The Berlin Wall fell. Does anyone think the age-60 wall will stand? When will it fall?
Comments/questions.......
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