Originally Posted by
groundstop
I think most guys that say they are leaving around 61/62 are wishful thinking. They are going to get to that point and realize that they are going to need some extra money for their retirement. College tuition has wiped them out and they are going to want to recover from that. They have decent seniority so they can build pretty easily.
I hear a lot of guys say 62. But I have my doubts. I hate to say it, but most guys probably just have nothing better to do. Of course this doesn't only apply to pilots, but that whole age group. The rare few actually will actual retire at 60 and go fishing, travel, and visit their grandchildren.
Actually, I think the biggest thing that hits guys trying to go before 65 is the cost of health care (until 65 and medicare - another pyramid scheme that will go bust - topic for another thread). Our retiree medical care premiums are very expensive and private alternatives are even worse. While they may choose to fly less (semi-retirement) it still doesn't open up their slot. The other thing is with life expectancies continue to improve it's takes a lot of money to retire without a pension. If you want some idea what that means most planner say you can figure on a 4-5% withdrawal rate which means for senior Captains with an income of $200,000 plus they are going to need 4-5 MILLION in the bank if they want to keep their same lifestyle and stop working.