There was a guy at my airline who took the early retirement from DAL back in the day (07/08?). He had been a 767 captain for years and was a boeing guy his whole career. In his retirement he worked a couple management jobs at another airline and wasn’t flying. He came in as management at my airline and finally went to airbus qual training after several months doing his mgmt job, washed out fairly early into training, and just went back to his mgmt job. I think he was around 61 or 62. As I said, he hadn’t flown in years so that may have played into it, but he couldn’t grasp the airbus, mostly because it was a new box, new procedures, and different automation than he was used to.

So, I can understand the apprehension, especially for someone in their late 50s/60s, where cognitive decline and memory issues have likely begun. That said, the bus is the easiest plane I’ve ever flown once you learn the basics of it and get used to it. Finally, I’d much rather be in the position of having to learn a new plane in older age than be facing the streets, and I’d keep my training concerns articulated in a manner that couldn't be construed into a woe is me type of comparison.

Anyway, good luck to all, whether that’s the streets or the sims. This is good for nobody, and I don’t think anyone meant to take away from the severity of the situation with their own world of potential stress on their mind, even if it came off that way.