Baker Letter
May 12, 2003
Author: Susan P. Baker

April 21, 2003

Senator John McCain
Chairman, Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

FAX: 202-226-0821
Re: Senator Inhofe’s Bill
Dear Senator McCain:

I am writing in strong support of Senator Inhofe’s Bill that would allow air carrier pilots to fly as captains and first officers up until their 65th birthday. At present, this is prohibited by the “Age 60 Rule,” initiated 40 years ago without supportive evidence because it was considered to be a “good idea.” At that time, life expectancy was less than it is today and people in their 60s were often considered ‘old.’

My reasons for supporting the bill are fivefold:

First, there is no scientific evidence to support the “Age 60 Rule.” From 1991 until 1993, I served on a panel of experts appointed by the FAA to oversee the FAA-sponsored research by Hilton Systems. This research, at a cost of well over a million dollars, found no basis for the Age 60 Rule and recommended that the age limit be increased.

Second, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada have no age restrictions for pilots, and other countries have raised their age limits. There is no indication that this has created a problem or placed lives at risk.

Third, there are far better predictors than age to indicate whether a pilot is likely to be suddenly incapacitated by a heart attack.1 These include stress tests and other non-invasive tests that have been in standard use since the 1980s,2 as well as more recent tests such as measurement of C-reactive protein.3 Yet none of these is required by the FAA in medical exams for the assessment of pilots flying for the airlines. To rely on age instead of more predictive tests suggests that the rule has nothing to do with safety.

Fourth, the rule is clearly discriminatory. It obviously discriminates against older pilots. Moreover, it is unfair to all the business entities that are no longer allowed to require retirement based on age. Economic arguments -- that this would cost companies more, or would lengthen the time that younger persons would have to wait for promotion to the highest ranks -- certainly would not have prevailed. Yet these appear to be the primary reasons that some airlines and younger pilots oppose increasing the age limit.

Finally, and perhaps most important: we may well be safer if we keep older, more experienced pilots in the cockpit. I would rather fly with my life in the hands of a 64 year old captain than with a 29 year old pilot flying as captain. Today, with pilot shortages pushing less experienced pilots into the captain’s seat, this is even more true than it was a few years ago. Recent research has showed that pilots with more than 5,000 hours of flight time have less than half the risk of crash involvement than pilots with less experience.4 The same research found no significant increase in crash risk as pilots approached or reached age 60.

I am a licensed pilot, have conducted research for the FAA, and spent many hours “flying jump seat” on the flight deck of airliners. In supporting this legislation, I am presenting my own views and knowledge, and also speaking in behalf of the many able-bodied, capable, experienced pilots who prefer not to retire at the peak of their abilities.

I would appreciate it if you would forward my letter to your colleagues and to the docket.

Sincerely,




Susan P. Baker, MPH, ScD (Hon.)
Professor


1. Wilkening R. The Age 60 Rule: Age discrimination in commercial aviation. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine 2002;73:194-202..

2. Bruce RA, DeRouen TA, and Hossack KF. The value of maximal exercise tests in risk assessment of primary coronary heart disease events in healthy men - Five years experience of the Seattle heart watch study. Am J Cardiology 1980;46(3):371-8.

3. Ridker PM, et al. C-Reactive protein adds to the predictive value of total and HDL cholesterol in determining risk of first myocardial infarction. Circulation 1998;97(20):2007-11.

4. Li G, Baker SP, Grabowski JG, Qiang Y, McCarthy ML, Rebok GW. Age, flight experience, and risk of crash involvement in a cohort of professional pilots. American J Epidemiology, in press.

hours is down from a higher level in the past, candidates for the airline's pilot positions typically average about 1,700 hours, said Slitt.