Easy, recceguy is completely wrong!!
The CF provides a pension to anyone who serves more than 2 years of regular service. However, you have to have served (now) 25 years of full time service to receive an immediate pension i.e get a pay cheque from the day you leave otherwise you can only collect the pension when you turn 60.
My pension will be something in the order of $50'000 after 25 years of service, which in the day of a defined contributions vice a defined benefit pension is awesome.
As I mentioned in an earlier post I'm 42 and still flying. I have no reason to believe that I cannot continue to fly until I retire. I can still serve for another 13 years and then retire at 55. By that time my pension will be close to $60'000 and indexed!!
There is alot to be said for flying in the airlines -big metal, days off etc etc and there are many very professional pilots doing that job. However, I'll take the 420kts at 250 agl any day because it's just too much fun.