Originally Posted by FirstClass

These graphs don't tell the whole story. I'm all for all that extra money, but if it means you have to be at a contract airline 5 years longer because it takes longer to upgrade or some other circumstance, then your total compensation in pay and benefits will not be high as someone who went to the major leagues 5 years before you. At age 65, those extra 5 years in the big leagues probably means a million dollars extra.