Will the 5 year seat lock finally be over? Lets have a beer on 12/13 to celebrate this stupid law that helped keep this once great industry stagnated for 5 years. 5+ year FOs who've been forced to sit at the bottom so the top guys could keep on truckin' at the super senior top pay scale. Or the whipsawed guys on their 3rd or 4th regional, all while on 1st or 2nd yer pay. Age 65 was passed five years ago and screwed just about everyone. Thanks guys! It's finally almost over.

 

Amen to that. The five year industry freeze is almost over.

 

Disclaimer...I'm not anywhere near 65 (I'm in my 40s).

So, when it is your time to retire, after having been pushed around for all/most our careers, will you retire at 60 and give someone younger a chance?!!

I'm not sure I can afford to retire at 60 and that is the honest truth...whether the rule had changed or not. Please don't lecture me about poor financial planning, blah, blah, blah...

Will you be able to retire at 60? Even if you are ready to retire at 60, will you actually do it because you are done flying? Will you give someone younger a chance at your left seat?

How is that any different for any/all of the guys that have stayed for the additional 5 years...Ask yourselves if you'd make that same decision or not. And please be honest about the answer...I truly don't know if I will go at 60 (the retirement age had not been raised to 65 when I started out), even if I can afford it; there I said it!!

 

I am financially on track to be out before 60. Glad to see this day come!

 

Yup, maybe even 55.

They did not get pushed around, they caved on scope, because as they said "it don't me" "I won't fly those small turds". So we all got stagnated for 5 yrs because of there poor decisions, and of course ALPA.

 

Well personally thats not the question to ask yourself. The correct one would be "Would you push for lobbying to raise the age to 70?" Finances aside no one should work that long! Life is about living and not working. If you spend 3/4 of your life slaving to live 5-10 more years not. WHY? I see people all the time all they talk about is work, work, work!! What about life? Enjoy it while you still can!

My soapbox for the day!

 

Ahh yes. The poor souls who've made north of $150-200k per year for the last 10+ years. But I digress. It's the fact that in one day, just one day, the junior guys (and by junior I mean the entire pilot group other than major captains) got screwed for five years. The top guys get an extra 5 yrs at the top while we got 5 yrs at the bottom. Not to mention furloughs and scope relaxation. Yea I really feel bad for those top dogs. And no, there's no way I want to or will work until I'm 65. Go play golf. Enjoy life. Fish. Spend time with family. I dont care. Let us have a chance to make more than $35k/yr.

 

How a person cannot "afford" to retire after making $3-7m in a career is beyond me. I'm just fine in my trailer park with budweiser and nascar, y'all need to come back down to Earth, really its not that bad. I'll retire at 55 and I don't even have to worry about the pool boy porkin the wife.

 

My ***** is that the expectation for decades was that as a 121 pilot you would work to 60 then retire.... plan accordingly. That was always my desire to be retired at 60 from flying or even earlier if able. NOW the expectation is that I should work to 65.... because as many those who supported age 65 said... well... yes you were screwed for 5 years but you can get them back at the top... horsecrap.

The reality is it was passed and we are at the end game now...( for awhile at least ) .... i am sure that many who would like to retire at 60 will now work beyond that if able because of lost wages at this point in their career.....only time will tell. For awhile at least...there is no more putting it off.

 

For the guys who were 59 or so, it was a winning lottery ticket.

They were likely wide body captains and for the past ~9 years had "prepared" to retire. They got 5 bonus years at the top of the food chain. Not saying everyone fits that description or even lobbied for it, but it happened.