FAA: Pilots OK To Fly To Age 65

The U.S. FAA announced today that it will be issuing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) later this year that will change the forced retirement age of US commercial airline pilots from 60 to age 65, embracing the change by the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization–a United Nations sanctioned organization) made last March.
The ICAO standard that requires at least one crewmember to be under the age of 60 will remain in effect, according to FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey. Which of course makes me wonder why if pilots above the age of 60 are safe to fly, then why the ‘at least one pilot under age 60′ requirement?

Administrator Blakey sited the fact that “Foreign airlines have demonstrated that experienced pilots in good health can fly beyond age 60 without compromising safety” as contributing to the rule change.

Surprisingly, the Airline Pilots Association has, since 1980, opposed any change in the Age 60 Rule, obviously concerned about the impact on junior pilots. ALPA has, however agreed to support the rule ‘as is’, according to ALPA president, Capt. John Prater. In contrast, its good to know that the Flight Safety Foundation has given the Proposed Rulemaking its blessing.

It will be interesting to see if any airline (especially the rare non-union one) does not embrace the rule change. No doubt it will be a scheduling headache to ensure that two 60 plus-pilots are not flying together in the same cockpit. Its all fine with me, as long as I don’t hear any announcements of a pending delay because the airline forgot that Captain Bob just turned 61 yesterday…..