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Deryk
11:02 AM on March 12, 2011
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Am a two million miler, with that said, Pilots are my choice for the number 1 profession for respect. With that said, this gentlemen has his views, however he is part of a very strong union, and therefore his union, would have to champion this cause. Airlines of course like it when someone earning top dollar, with benefits, leaves their payroll. Word has it, new pilots make very little. I like gray hair in the cockpit, and only hope the medical profession, has some valid input, who should and who should not, pilot a plane. There are of course always two of them up there.
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nice_try
12:04 PM on March 12, 2011
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Deryk:
His union, ACPA, is not "championing" his cause. ACPA, and the majority of AC pilots want to keep the retirement age at 60. The only ones who want it to change are the greedy ones who are about 56 and older, and who never said a peep for their whole careers while others were being "forced" to retire ahead of them. I would have had some respect for these guys if they actually spoke up in their 40s, but look at this clown Mike Ennis. He waited until he is 50 DAYS from retirement.
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69buick
6:39 PM on March 12, 2011
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Can you imagine a 60 year old trying to hang onto a job he has worked at all his life?
What a crazy world we live in!
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benner
5:48 PM on March 12, 2011
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And this sums up in a nutshell why the public hates the unions!
a) This guy pulls down $230k a year for babysitting a computer 8 days a month.
b) The entire system is base on seniority, so there is no incentive to be good at your job
c) It forces a basically fully trained, fully able person not to work any more.
d) The pension is better than 95% of peoples wages and kicks in at 60 (more?)
What a complete display of mismanagement of resources, both human and capital.
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RBenstein
7:03 PM on March 12, 2011
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a) flying an airplane sounds like nothing until the said airplane, or computer system malfunctions and the pilot is charged with the job of saving the lives of everyone on board.
Can happen any day, any time, any point of the flight and for any reason
Don't try it at home, Benner.
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Bill Robertson
8:31 PM on March 12, 2011
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I'm sure these are all the thoughts you feel, until you're in the air, in trouble, and you're praying to God to have this guy save your@$$ - at which time his age and how much he makes will be of no consequence to you
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etgbc
8:48 PM on March 12, 2011
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wow! must be a loser. The union does not want this. I Guess it's your public not mine!
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JohanGK
4:56 PM on March 12, 2011
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Gee... some of the comments here are so typically Canadianl!! Secondly, I am not sure that the author of this article clearly articulated the central issue.
The fact is, on this issue, Air Canada is grossly out of step with what's happening in the rest of the world. Retirement ages of the worlds' largest airlines....
British Airways 65
American Airlines 65
US Airways 65 (remember Sulley... I'd feel comfortable hearing his voice from the cockpit)
Continental Airlines 65
Lufthansa 65
Nipon 65
WESTJET 65
... I could go on!
ps. Canada has a great health care system..but you know what.. It's not THE BEST IN THE WORLD!
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overthehill
5:18 PM on March 12, 2011
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Airline pilots, judges, doctors.senators
Some would "hang on" until they dropped in the saddle.
This boils down to selfishness...nothing more. There is lots to keep one occupied after one retires.
Where are you going to draw the line?
The only reason why retiring later, is encouraged, is to reduce pension plan
obligations nothing else.
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get_real
6:27 PM on March 12, 2011
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What does any of these have to do with Air Canada? If they want to retire at 60, as they have negotiated who are you greedy pigs to try to change the rules to suit a few at the expense of the rest.
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Bill Jackson Jr
4:32 PM on March 12, 2011
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What really matters is whether his performance will decline beyond age 60. Historically, I suspect it would, but with modern health care and exercise, many 60 year olds are better able to perform than those much younger. I am not at all surprised to see the union abandon him - typical collectivist behaviour.
I am a faculty member. We used to have mandatory 65 retirement in Ontario. McGuinty abandoned it, as I think he should have. However, there should be mandatory performance assessment at 65 (and perhaps other ages too) if the faculty members seeks to stay on. As it is, the deadwood is not leaving now, universities are get hit with higher salaries, and a hiring freeze in consequence. What a mess. I have no problem with allowing stellar teachers and researches to keep going, just as I would with pilots. Base the decision on performance, not age.
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Bill Robertson
4:42 PM on March 12, 2011
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This whole age thing is nothing more than BS based on the 1940's. Aviation today is highly technical and highly monitored, as are the crews both for medical and proficiency reasons. If they fail their medical or proficiency at any age they should be out. As long as they maintain medical and proficiency they should be in, if they want to. I'd rather be flying with guys upfront who have experience, know how to think, and do math in their heads without resoting to calculators for numbers over 10. Sully Sulenberger didn't put that crate in the Hudson and save everyone because he had no experience, I'll take the guys like Sully, or the Bob Pearson's of the world, over the young kids any day when the going gets tough.
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West Coast Todd
4:50 PM on March 12, 2011
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But if you have well qualified younger people, why keep an old person around?
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