Editorial
By Steve Jacques

Age 60 Rule . . .Revisited

(Reprinted from 'The Pipeline', newsletter of ALPA council 5)

When I was contemplating the idea of writing an editorial on this subject, I had the opportunity to speak with a fellow pilot about it. When I first brought it up, he said, "Are you going to revisit that again?" His comment sent me thinking in two or three different directions.

First, I thought that "revisit" would fit nicely into the title. Second, he seemed resigned to the fact that since we, as pilots, enter into this career knowing full well that we will be compelled to retire on the day before our 60th birthday, we should accept the situation. This thinking is not wrong, and it is not right. Like so many other controversial subjects that arise in a democracy, it is a matter of opinion.

Just for the record, I am in favor of abolishing the mandatory Age 60 Rule. If you do not want to work beyond age 60, then you should not have to, and you should not be penalized in any way (including collection of your rightful retirement funds). If I choose to work beyond 60, then I should have that right too, in order to enhance my retirement fund, or because I enjoy the job, or for whatever reason I choose.

There are over-age-60 pilots flying Part 121heavy aircraft, with passengers, in U.S. airspace right now. These pilots work for European and Asian carriers whose governments allow pilots to fly over the age of 60—carriers that have signed ICAO treaties that the United States recognizes. (Yep, JAL is one of them.) Since the United States is a signatory of these treaties, the FAA has no power to stop foreign pilots over the age of 60 who choose to operate under FAR 121 in the United States. However, as we all know, the FAA has the complete power to stop you and me from doing exactly the same thing in our own country.

Hey, but what about those of you who have 20 or 30 years left to go? If you enjoy the job (despite the occasional complaints that we all have), those years will go by very quickly. And what if the current "good times" don’t stay so good? Maybe you will have to work beyond age 60. Our brothers and sisters at Pan Am and Eastern were riding high at one time too. And another thing, do you trust your duly elected officials in Washington to fix the Social Security system before you’re ready to take your fair share? Better be prepared to wait until age 70 to get yours!

Commenting on Baker v. FAA in 1990 (see the "Age 60 Chronology" section of this editorial), former ALPA president Henry Duffy said, "Pilots over age 55 comprise only 5–6 percent of the total membership. The other 95 percent selfishly view the forced retirement of older pilots as their guaranteed path and a God-given right to their own early promotion." This is Mr. Duffy’s opinion, and I personally do not think that the majority of pilots oppose any change of the Age 60 Rule for this reason (besides, I’m one of the 95 percent). There are some who may fit nicely into Mr. Duffy’s category; however, I believe that apathy and lack of resolve on the part of most of us (myself included) are the enemy. We all must remember one important fact: Life is the great equalizer and what we do (or don’t do) now will surely come back to haunt us some day.

So what about you? Is it worth your time and effort to change this rule? We can, you know. And it starts right at ALPA’s doorstep. ALPA is officially on record as being opposed to any change in the Age 60 Rule. In 1980, ALPA established official policy supporting the Age 60 Rule. It has been reaffirmed since that time, most recently in 1994. But ALPA is you and I, and together we can initiate the change.

Think about it, and be ready to speak up with your opinion right here at Council 5 when the subject is brought up for discussion at a future meeting. Furthermore, I challenge each and every one of you to comment on this editorial, pro or con, by writing a "letter to the editor," or better yet, an article.

Mahalo, Steve

"Never doubt the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. That’s about the only way it has ever happened in the past."

—Margaret Mead, anthropologist