I see quite a bit of stereotyping here.
I have flown with some pilots who were in their fifties who were overweight and somewhat, shall we say, "behind" the aircraft and who lacked motivation to keep abreast of revisions and changes.
On the other hand I have flown with pilots approaching 65 who run regular marathons, were word perfect on revised SOPs and who I would be quite happy to have my family sitting in the cabin going into Naples in the middle of a thunderstorm with an average first officer.
The answer is it all depends on the individual. As has been previously stated there are such items as medicals and checks which every pilot has to pass to remain on the line.
Also if you are over 60 years it is, I believe, a requirement that the other pilot is less than 60 years old.
Given the demographics of the post war baby boomers we are going to see a lot of very experienced pilots leaving the profession over the next few years.
I would suggest that offering continued employment to older competent pilots over 65 so they can pass on their skills and wisdom to those that are not so blessed would be an enhancement to the safety of flight operations rather than to it's detriment.
Last edited by fireflybob; 24th May 2013 at 17:29.