[Rob L]

AAIB Bulletin 8/2018 page 29. DH82A Tiger Moth

Commander’s Age: 79 years. In a Tiger Moth, with a passenger.

I'm sorry, but there comes a time when old people need to stop being in command of complex or challenging aircraft, especially those aircraft requiring an attentive mind. In the last 6 weeks my home airfield has been closed twice by old people (70-plus) "forgetting" to put the wheels down on their aircraft.

The commercial world has the right idea: stop taking passengers before the passengers are put at risk.

I don't mind if this opens a can of worms about ageism in the pilot community: it needs saying.

Rob

[CloudHound]

Agree it needs debating. I turn 65 this year and have already thought about when to call it a day.

Like so many things human behaviour is the problem and so a second opinion will be my way of deciding.

[Flyin'Dutch']

I am not aware of any research in this area relating to aviation, but it has been researched in relation to driving.

The outcome indicating that older drivers compensate for their loss of agility with both experience and more careful behaviour. We all know of people who might be better off if they stopped, but using insurance as a measure by proxy, I don't think that is something which can be extrapolated to the older pilot.

[skydriller]

AAIB Bulletin 8/2018 page 29. DH82A Tiger Moth

Commander’s Age: 79 years. In a Tiger Moth, with a passenger.

I'm sorry, but there comes a time when old people need to stop being in command of complex or challenging aircraft, especially those aircraft requiring an attentive mind.

To equate a tiger moth with complex made me smile... ...And I dont think that incident is a good example for your issue with age...

[TLRippon]

I think if you stopped anyone over seventy flying then there would be very quiet sky’s over the UK and hardly any instructors/examiners.

[JAFO]

I'm not sure that you could ever set an age at which people should stop flying; individuals are very different. I've long thought that there should be recurrent driving tests over a certain age, so I suppose the same would make sense in aviation, but to stop everybody on their 75th birthday wouldn't make sense to me.

I had a friend who gave up in his mid-seventies because he realised that he was getting "too careful" which made him realise that he no longer had confidence in his own abilities. But I also remember watching Ken Wallis throwing his autogyro round the sky well into his nineties, though he had stopped taking passengers by then; if I remember correctly. As I say, individuals are very different, I plan to fly a Chipmunk on my 104th birthday - that will then be 90 years to the day flying, I'll give up after that.

[johnm]

Being self critical is crucial.

As I passed my 70th birthday and had to renew my licence I took advantage of the assessment available for older drivers and came out with two minor issues, which I pay attention to.

I revalidate my instrument rating annually.

[Bill McCarthy]

Sluka for sale soon.

[Waveflyer]

......old people (70-plus)......

Rob

Not an issue for me, I use a different definition

Edited to include:-

I don't mind if this opens a can of worms about ageism in the pilot community: it needs saying.

Rob

Perhaps it would be better said by a qualified advocate.

[Iceman]

Presumably Rob, you would have considered these people to be decent pilots right up to a microsecond before they landed gear-up ?. Many a far younger pilot has had a similar incident.

Iceman

[letpmar]

The British Parachute Association tried to bring in age restrictions for jump pilots. It went to arbitration when challenged and they had to back down. They where unable to provide any proof that age was a factor in any accidents. As has been said in fact, an older pilot was more likely to not take risks.

Pete

[Talkdownman]

I think if you stopped anyone over seventy flying then there would be very quiet sky’s over the UK and hardly any instructors/examiners.

I think the Flyer Forum would be also become quieter...

[davey]

I'll be 65 next year and I'm seriously considering buying a boat, just bimbling about in Poole harbour and doing a bit of fishing

[Irv Lee]

I think the % of CFIs insisting on gps training before solo nav would go up.
However
(A) because this accident apoears to be a pseudo instructional situation without an instructor qualification mentioned (and certainly without good instructional practices by the sound of it) we don't get to read about the experience of the passenger.... eg any tailwheel at all? And why does it say crew 2 passengers 0?
And
(B) it is a pilot submitted report - what is the latin for "reader beware"?

[muffin]

I do carefully ponder that question occasionally. I do however think I would stop helicopter flying well before fixed wing.