Global Airlines Group Proposes Raising Pilot Retirement Age

Trade association argues demand for pilots exceeds supply.

Friday, August 29, 2025 at 10:00 AM ET

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Pilots in an aircraft flight deck. [Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is pushing the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to raise the international commercial pilot retirement age from 65 to 67 to help address an alleged pilot shortage and meet rising air travel demand.
IATA argues the age increase is safe, citing longer, healthier pilot lifespans, the lack of increased safety incidents in countries without upper age limits, and proposes pairing older pilots with younger co-pilots.
The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), representing over 80,000 pilots, strongly opposes the change, emphasizing the importance of current safety regulations and noting that similar proposals for U.S. pilots were recently rejected by Congress and the FAA.
ICAO is scheduled to consider IATA’s proposal during its General Assembly meeting in September.

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The world’s largest airline trade association is pushing to raise the international age limit for commercial pilots from 65 to 67.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents over 350 airlines, including all of the U.S. legacy carriers, is asking the U.N.’s aviation body, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), to consider the change to help alleviate an alleged shortage of pilots.