Originally Posted by
Big E 757
I keep waiting for the company to close this loophole or have a min month requirement for benefits, insurance, etc.
I guess we don't have enough 62-64 year old guys that are dropping a couple trips a month to enjoy a partial retirement while keeping their benefits. If I was 60/when I'm 60, if I'm not retired yet, I plan on doing exactly that and keeping my insurance while taking it easy for the rest of my career while my 401K grows a few more %.
Hopefully our staffing will be adequate by then to be able to drop a trip or two.
The guys who are 62-64 today lost millions in their DB plans, with little time to recoup it. They are flying their butts off trying to put enough in the bank to retire and not have to be a greeter at Wal Mart.
It's easy to say you'll go low and relax at 62....when you are 40 or 50. When you are 62 with no DB plan and little in the bank, no so much. The 'smart play' I see is to bid international F/O and buddy bid with LCA's drop trips and only fly greenslips. That's why we have a lot of 25+ year F/O's on the 777 and other international wide bodies.
They make more than narrow body domestic Captain and work far less days, and when they do work, it's one leg to a 24+ hour layover in a nice hotel, not 9 hours at the airport Holiday Inn.