Not to mention that these age 60+ pilots are more vulnerable to the effects of the virus and would greatly reduce their exposure from retiring now.

Pilots eat their young. I think you'll be lucky to see 200.

So how about the short-term LOA that opens up on Thursday? I assume their decision for how many VSTLOA's they allow will be based on how many VPLOA's they get. I think VSTLOA's will probably go senior and mainly to our narrowbody fleet, minus the E190. Despite the plan to park it at the end of '20, something tells me the 190 guys/gals will be very busy.

I'll put in for it, but like you I expect it to go senior. I'm a pretty junior CA and don't think it'll get down to me.

at least double that for the early out “retirement” requests. We will know how it shakes out on Friday.

In any case where we are talking hundreds versus thousands of leave participants I can't see it making much of a difference. Short term cost cuts make sense but even if AA gets its loans/grants come Sept 1 they will have to right size the airline. All the senior folks (including myself) are flying the 777/787/330. If you park them what are you going to do with the pilots? Ive heard of domestic and Hawaii trips being flown with a dozen folks onboard. What is the logic to that? Personally I have four years left and will take a paid leave if offered. Still returning in October I doubt the situation will be much different. That leaves a huge amount of discplacements, training, and of course layoffs. Short of Force Majeure (and I don't know the legal ramifications of that) Im not sure how this will go. Another MOAB will undoubtedly have to be implemented to sort things out.
In the end I don't see how another reorganization is avoidable. That is going to be really bad...

I guess we’ll find out Friday, but another factor is that it may not be strictly a pilots’ decision. 62+ as we know are most at risk from virus. How many wives, husbands, kids are telling their pilot loved ones that they need to take this deal and take it now?

I’m glad so many of you are optimistic about how many will take early retirement. But from the Captains I’ve flown with, all have a very short and narrow view of the next 3 years. Caveat..this is PHL and mostly ex US Airways guys who are sort of infamous for stepping over a dollar to save a penny. So hopefully common sense will prevail at the legacy AA bases.

Nobody I've flown with well late the ploa. But the shorter ones at least 5 I've spoken with were into the idea

Or to put it another way, have hit every damn rung on the ladder up and down and are doing what they think is best for them and their families, unlike everyone else in this country.

Feta cheese...complaining about that in your crew meal, falling on your "It's Time" lanyard, now?