Only 19 retirees announced for 1 November. This is somewhat surprising considering what will happen to the B-fund, however it is also indicative of the mindset of so much of the AA pilot force, trusting their financial future to a promise rather than facing the facts of the current situation. There are plenty of reasons to keep working especially for those who have already lost much of their retirement to divorce, failed second businesses, live pay check to pay check, etc. There are many though who have north of 1.5 million in their b-fund and are willing to risk that to the variables of the stock market between now and next spring and must have no concern over the yet to be determined administrative costs, estimated to be as much as 5 percent, of dispersing the funds some time within the next 12 months. ( Yes I know that management said it would be done in May but that is AA management speaking.) Hopefully it will all work out to their advantage.

 

Respectfully, I don't follow the logic here. Currently, the B Fund is 100 percent invested in equities so the same variability exist today as it will tomorrow. AMRIS has done a good job of managing the B Fund, but the option is there to have the funds activity managed within the 401k or another financial entity of the pilot's choosing. As to why so few choose to retire, clearly they weren't concerned that their retirement was going away, or no future contributions would be forthcoming.

Why is the argument always trotted out about failed marriages, businesses, etc. is it possible that senior pilots, in fact most pilots enjoy their chosen profession and the company they work for. That also means they want to see improvements, but the fact remains that most have chosen to stay for more than just the usual reasons thrown out. AA is and will continue to be a great company whether we merge with US, any other carrier or choose to go it alone.

 

Up until now the b-fund had a 90 day lock-in for those under 60, and a 60 day look-back for those retiring after age 60. This allowed some protection if the market took a nose dive as you were about to retire. As you say the fund is all in equities and very vulnerable to a dramatic market fluctuation. Pilots will no longer have any protection and should the market be in the dumps as the funds are being liqudated, well the pilots are now just along for the ride. You are correct in stating that pilots have a great job, one that indeed is tough to walk away from, but I dare say not very many will tell you they enjoy the company they work for. Assuming you are a commercial airline pilot, employed for someone other than SWA, can you say you enjoy working for the criminals running the other legacy carriers?

 

Ask the recently acquired Airtran pilots how they feel about SWA.... Bottom line is every company has it's warts. All pilots think they will retire early (or others should) in their 30's and 40's, somewhere around their 50's, their lifestyle is set, kids are gone, etc and they settle in for the "best" years of their career. If a pilot hasn't left AA by now, they are in for the long haul. Best of luck to AA in getting back to an industry leading contract.

 

Starting to sound like C&R around here.... LOL

K

 

How did you guess? As you probably know APA dislikes C&R for the diversity of opinions it airs and APA has seen to it that those with the most experience with the airline, retirees, are denied access, So much for open and honest debate.

 

B-fund alert: Post election, Obama wins, stock market dive. Yep hanging around may still pay off for those with north of 12,000 b-fund units but my bet is there are alot of uneasy senior AA pilots today. Good luck guys because you have lost what little control you had with your b-fund and are just along for the ride. At least there are 19 happy faces today. Oh yes the 19 retirees will get their funds based on the 90 day or 60 day values, regardless of how low the market goes, diluting the fund even further.

 

Don't forget though, the value of the dollar is up

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch)—The dollar rose to a two-month high against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday as U.S. equity markets tanked.

Worries about Greece also put pressure on the euro.