Originally Posted by
Itsajob
The training centers at every legacy are full of old guys who can finally hold a widebody. They do just fine. Any reluctance to hire because of age would be because the airline wouldn’t have as many years to benefit from the pilot’s labor and to recover training cost. From the instructors that I’ve talked to, there seems to be more problems during training associated with young pilots attitudes than old pilots ability.
You are missing a piece of the puzzle here. An older guy who'se spent the last 20 years flying a Boeing or Airbus, getting upgrade training on a Boeing or Airbus, maybe even the same equipment isn't learning something brand new. Switching from Boeing speak to Airbus speak is a consideration that most older pilots think about long and hard before placing that bid.
You take some one who is in their late 50's that has been flying CRJ's for the last 20 years and throw them into a Boeing for the first time are going to have issues and probably require a couple more sims.
Ultimately it is the training environment/atmosphere that allows for success to be attained.