ScCal,
Just curious, how old are you? I'm 54 and have seen several large hiring boom-bust cycles since age 25. If you miss one or two of the booms, you may go bust. If you don't have the good fortune to get hired at one of 2 or perhaps 3 airlines at just the right time, you MAY not be in a posn to afford an early retirement. Toss in a few kids / college, an ailing family member in need, perhaps Wife Version 2.0, live in NY, LA, HI, NJ, DC or other expensive hub city and things can get ugly fast.
Take a look around the terminals and note how many older Commuter guys you see. I'd bet that most of them are unable to sock away the funds and I'd bet their company match is shamefully low. Hiring has been abysmal for the last 5-6 years, so they're simply holding a spot in line with minimal advancement.
Take a look at the number of guys at AA, UAL and USAir who were hired at the wrong time, they were rewarded with 15-20 years in the right seat. Go back another generation and look at the guys who spent 15-16 years on the panel and never attained the HP to upgrade. Most weren't driving Benz's.
Unless I marry well or win the lotto there is a good chance that I'll be pulling your gear on my 64th birthday. There are a LOT of guys just like me. So, what do I do, voluntarily leave a cushy WB F/O seat with 3-4 weeks of annual VACA, 16% BC fund kicker and a nice paycheck so I can go work the counter at Advance Auto? What would you do?
It's funny how many times I heard the "go early" line of thinking and how few times I have seen it actually happen. Life gets in the way.
My suggestion if you want to go early, move to the sticks, drive old pickups, keep wife version 1.0, drink PBR, vacation close to home, skip the tenderloins and lobster, drink Henry and live small. It can be done, but I blew it.
