Originally Posted by
liveupthere
I don't think it's a GROSS exaggeration. 5288 mandatory retirements by the end of 2014. I'd say there will be quite a few more that don't stay till 65.
In an old FAA study they found 16% of pilots retired before the mandatory retirement age (60 at the time). Another 16% stopped flying the line before age retirement age. I've heard the ratio of medical disqualifications to retirements is significant.
http://flightsafety.org/hf/hf_jan-feb96.pdf (p.3)