WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. House committee narrowly voted on Wednesday to raise the mandatory retirement age for commercial pilots from 65 to 67.
Members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted 32 to 31 in favor of a pilot age amendment to the five-year bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) aviation safety and infrastructure program for the next five years. .
Republican Rep. Troy Niels said, “Currently, commercial airline pilots are required to retire at age 65, but those same pilots who were forced to retire still fly corporate and charter jets beyond age 65. ,” he said, adding that the change could help deal with the recession. Lack of pilots.
The House committee approved the nearly 800-page FAA bill 63-0 unanimously. The bill is expected to go to the House as a whole next month.
Republican Rep. Sam Graves, chairman of the committee, said the bill is “critical to our economy, the millions of jobs, and the 850 million passengers who depend on our aviation system each year.” Stated.
The pilot age proposal has faced opposition from labor unions and faces an uncertain fate by a U.S. Senate committee, which is set to consider the FAA bill on Thursday, which currently has no pilot age. increase is not included.
The Regional Aviation Association (RAA) praised the pilot age increase, noting that 324 airports have parked more than 400 aircraft due to pilot shortages, losing an average of one-third of air service.
“By increasing the retirement age for pilots, we will try to retain experienced pilots, especially captains,” the RAA said.
The Airline Pilots Association (ALPA) opposes raising the retirement age, arguing it could cause problems with airline schedules and pilot training, requiring pilot contracts to resume. Even if the proposal were approved, the union said international rules would continue to ban pilots over the age of 65 from flying in most countries other than the United States.
ALPA said the proposal was “a politically driven choice that betrays fundamental understandings of how the airline industry operates, the profession of pilots and safety.”
Senator Lindsey Graham previously said that when the US raised the retirement age from 60 to 65 in 2007, “the sky didn’t fall.” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg does not support raising the retirement age for pilots.
The House bill would bar airlines from charging family seat fares, but it would not set minimum seat size requirements or impose new rules to compensate passengers for delays. do not have.
Reporting by David Shepardson.Editing: David Gregorio
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