TD,
Yep, I hear passing references to age 67 also...nothing concrete. No way to tell if that'd do any good or even if "good" is needed.
How many people stay to 65 anyway ? I don't know. How many are physically able to ? Dunno. How many could get to 67 ? Nobody knows..it may be no fix at all.
The DL situation is interesting because, IIUC, the NW guys have their defined benefit plan intact and are therefore under no pressure to stay to the end to make up for pension losses. Must be nice.
I'd guess the top end of the Part 121 world isn't where the squeeze will be felt since that's where so many people aim career wise. Even if they have to accept people with less overall experience, I'd guess they'll fill the seats...and you know that's what they'll do if it comes to that. Probably not the end of the world...just a change. People will say the sky is falling, though. :-)
The legacies have their pick these days. The average TTL time of DL new hires since they started hiring in earnest in 2014 is 7,000+/- hrs with solid PIC time. Not sure how UAL, AA, SWA, FedEx, UPS, JB, etc. are doing in that department. I'm guessin' the same.
Interesting times. If a young person can hit this wave on the upslope, pre-2029ish, it's gonna be a fantastic career.
Not sure how the Part 91K, 135, straight 91, low-end 121 gigs will make out. They may be the ones to feel the heat first.
I think I put a link to a study by a Rand Corp guy on here somewhere but can't remember where. It's the best one I've seen and I've tried to read them all.
Fun stuff, no ?