Damn....That should be good for a "Tall Bold w/ Room" at Starbucks in Terminal C (employee discount factored in that is).

At least you got that going for you.

Let me guess. Class of June 2001?

Do pilots over age 60 do better or worse in the A-plan if they stay up to age 65?

Thanks

Lot of good that will do you at age 60, huh? Can barely get a cup of morning go-go juice for that price today.

I don't know for sure since I am an after the A-plan hire, but I flew with a guy who kind of explained the whole thing to me. He seemed to indicate that after around age 62 and a couple of months it actually hurts a guy to work longer. (If that is the case, we have quite a few dumb pilots working past 62 here. Then again, many of them are scabs so we aren't talking intellectual giants, either.)

Can someone who understands all this better confirm and explain this?

EWRflyr,

Thanks for the info. What you explained is exactly what I was wondering. I heard the same thing about the "hit" if a pilot stays past 62.5.

I was wondering how much of a hit it is and if they are sticking around for the "possible" retro pay, equity, and may a year of higher wages to offset the "hit".

Thanks again.

There's a point I think where the lump sum may peak, sometime after 60 and before 65, so in that sense it may hurt. However the reason people continue working past that peak is because no matter when you take the lump sum, retiring early instantly stops an annual income stream of $175K or so. That's what most can't afford to give up even if it means some degradation of the A Plan lump sum.

I believe its a reduction in payout due to your longevity from the actuarial tables being used to calculate your annuity or lump sum from the A plan.

Yeah, even those pilots who "aren't intellectual giants" can figure that out. There are also other benefits, such as health insurance, that stop when you retire before you reach the age to qualify for Medicare.

Wow. When were you hired?