Maybe, maybe not. I fly with plenty of 60+ guys and they're all sharp and energetic. In my observation, the other guy's performance has more to do with whether he's on day 6, or just commuted in on the redeye from MIA, than his/her age.

Obviously age matters *eventually*, but the original age 60 rule was pure insider political dealing on the part of the AA CEO to solve a labor dispute.... by getting rid of the ringleaders So not really any legit data behind that. So if we're going to go with data and science the first thing we need to do is eliminate all preconceived biases associated with any particular age and then let the chips fall where they may.