Originally Posted by
Scoop
Hank,
Age 65 was indeed a windfall for everyone approaching 60 in the left seat - 5 more years at the top of the food chain when all ahead of you had to retire at 60.
Try telling the guys who lived through the B scale and 9-11 and retired at age 60 that age 65 was not a windfall. Just like the B scale was a screw job for all who lived through it.
Call it like it is and don't try to spin it. You can't on one hand claim that age 65 was not a windfall and on the other hand claim the B scale was not a screw job. They both affected Pilots one positively and the other negatively.
I am not saying guys in your demographic did not get screwed but claiming age 65 was not a windfall is too much of a stretch. I think the guys who got screwed the worst were the early 90 furlough guys followed closely by the 9-11 furlough group, but what can we do about it? All demographics have been screwed to varying degrees by the vicissitudes of this career, we are even now seeing the 2 and 3 year Captain group who were going to have the "Dream career" talk about furloughs. Its all part of, dare I say it, wait for it........................................"Living the Dream!"
Scoop
Sorry, I was hired with a DB available at age 60. I was also 777A at about age 50. I don't consider working an extra 5 years a windfall. Now everyone gets that windfall! So it's not a windfall, it's SOP.