Hello Phoebe Buffet, it is very true that contracts are re-negotiated each time the old one comes up for renewal. In most law-abiding countries the old contract stays valid until the new one takes effect. BUT that is not what we are talking about here. The FAA rule 60 law is an upper limit for being allowed to pilot the different FAR categories (some exceptions apply). This is a LAW. A contract is a mutual negotiated result, in which an employer and the representatives of the employees come to an agreement, with the law being the upper limit that can be agreed too.
At my airline we retire at age 56. Our national legal limit for flying in an airliner is age 65. THIS gap is the root issue of any change to the age 60 rule. A few of the older pilots at my airline say that they are not able to exercise their full economic potential because they are “forced” out at 56. They knew about this age 56 since the day they joined my airline. They would like to continue to fly in their command positions until age 65 to make more money, damn the consequence to anyone else. And I am not just talking about the junior guys, but also guys like me who do want out when my time comes. If they were allowed to fly to 65 it would force irreversible changes upon my T&C’s, so I will resist them to the fullest extend possible. What I say to them is that; they are able to continue their careers, just not at my airline. And indeed some do by moving out to the Far East (etc), but most tend to call it a day, when they are faced with even the slightest obstacles (like transferring domicile and licenses).
What we are talking about here is that any change in the age 60 rule by the FAA will lead inevitably to changes at the legacy airlines to their retirement age. An age increase to age 65 will allow the sober pension schemes left at the legacy carriers a ten year reprieve (you would fly for five years longer, and you would draw your pension for five years less, because I would hope you would still pass away at the same age as before). This will bring their pension costs down considerably. So there are individual gains to be made for people in the sense that they have a longer career, but the big collective winners would be the airlines. And since they tend to pass their savings down to the passenger they would be the ultimate winners, I guess.
So Phoebe Buffet I hope you take the contracts you sign a little more seriously than your posts would indicate. Changing the 60 rule law is not an automatic change to your contract; all that happens is that the new law becomes the upper limit that your union and airline could use. Your contract does not become null and void each year, and certainly it won’t when and if the rule 60 changes. By the way Phoebe Buffet; what allows me to retire at age 56 is that my pension scheme is based on this age, if that were to change to another age I too would have to work to that age in order to make sure I am financially secure.
Any change in the 60 rule would have a ripple effect felt far and beyond the simple age change.
Gr. O.