Stepping down gracefully....
Pasted up on the loo doors in the gliding club, and in a lot of other places, the mantra I'M SAFE! The guide to help you decide, are you FIT TO FLY today?
I for Illness, M for Medication, S for Stress, A for Alcohol, F for Fatigue, E....don't remember what E stands for.
All worthy considerations. But how do you decide when the time comes to step down gracefully from flying due to AGE and the inevitable decline in sharpness that comes with old age? Or do you just wait until the medics give you the chop?
There are two kinds of pilots, Bold Pilots and Old Pilots, they say. But there are also two kinds of Old Pilots. If you have been flying for years and years and years, your accumulated experience and good sense would imply you can still cut the mustard. BUT those who start flying in their fifties or sixties, able to buy a fancy Cirrus with its get out of trouble rocket chute, are less likely to cope when the weather turns uncomfortable, or the magenta line goes on the blink....
Having the good sense to say no, to quit when you are still ahead, could you do that?