Amidst all the talk of retirement ages, don't miss the real devil in this deal: the linking of pensionable pay rises to RPI while normal pay continues to rise with wage inflation. After 25 years of this your pensionable pay rate might be only half of your full pay. So after 35 years, say, with the company, you'd be retiring at 65 on about 1/4 pay. That is why I am prepared to strike; this is no better than the career-average deal that BALPA shot down while it was still taxiing.