Originally Posted by
Jake Wheeler
Reviewing the 2004 AA seniority list (which included all the TWA pilots), 2059 pilots will reach age 65 mandatory retirement between now and January 2014. Another 3307 will by January 2019 and all the rest, 6475, by November 2042.
5300 empty seats over 10 years averages 530 a year. This only applies if AA doesn't reduce their fleet and begin outsourcing like other major airlines.
The implimentation of PBS will change the equation drastically. AA can do a lot more with a lot less. Those "empty seats" will disappear like a rainpuddle in the Sahara.