{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=3DAF9D27-76C0-4370-B958-4FD90773169A", "Graham, Senators' Legislation Addresses Pilot Shortage", "2022-07-25", "2022", "2022-07", "Republican", "Senate", "SC", "Lindsey Graham", "G000359", "www.lgraham.senate.gov", "graham", "https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), John Thune (R-South Dakota), Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee) will today introduce the Let Experienced Pilots Fly Act to address airline flights cancellations caused by a shortage of pilots.\n\nThe legislation:\n\nRaises the mandatory commercial pilot retirement age from 65 to 67.\n\nRequires that pilots over the age of 65 maintain a first-class medical certification, which must be renewed every six months.\n\nRequires air carriers to continue using pilot training and qualification programs approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).\n\nDoes not change or alter any other qualification \u2013 beyond age \u2013 to become a commercial airline pilot.\n\nWith baby boomers making up half of the airline pilot population, roughly 5,000 fully qualified pilots will be forced to retire within the next two years and the problem will grow even more acute in the following years. The wave of forced pilot retirements continues even as hundreds of flights are being canceled due to a shortage of available pilots and crews.\n\nIn 2007, the retirement age for pilots in the United States was raised from 60 to 65 after medical reports concluded age had an \u2018insignificant impact\u2019 on performance in the cockpit and there were safety precautions already in place to prevent accidents in case of incapacitation. Nothing in this legislation changes current safety and proficiency procedures for commercial pilots. Pilots will continue to be held to an incredibly high standard to ensure passenger safety.\n\n\u201cThere is a severe and growing pilot shortage in the United States. Every air traveler sees and feels the impact when they go to the airport,\u201d said Senator Graham. \u201cOne of the biggest causes of air delays is a lack of available crews. This summer, if your plane actually leaves on time, you feel like you won the lottery. My legislation extends the mandatory retirement age by two years and will make an immediate and appreciable difference in keeping highly-trained pilots on the job. The traveling public deserves better than what they are currently getting. Our bill moves the needle in the right direction to address the critical pilot shortage.\u201d\n\n\u201cLong delays and cancellations have become all too common in airports across the country, including in Iowa. Part of the reason is due to a shortage of pilots, which has unfortunately caused some airlines to cancel service to Iowa regional airports. By allowing healthy pilots to extend their careers if they choose, our proposal is one step we can take to ensure Iowans have better access to commercial air service, quickly alleviate airport congestion and get Americans to their destinations in a timely manner,\u201d Senator Grassley said.\n\n\u201cAmerica is facing a pilot shortage,\u201d said Senator Blackburn. \u201cCurrent rules block experienced pilots from the workforce based solely on their age. This legislation will raise the maximum age to 67, helping to reduce the worker shortage, lower the number of canceled flights, and increase travel into states like Tennessee.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur nation\u2019s air travel system is struggling with a pilot shortage. The lack of available pilots causes flight cancellations and service reductions. This hurts Nebraska airports that rely on the Essential Air Service to stay connected. Raising the retirement age is a common-sense solution that will help to alleviate this crisis,\u201d said Senator Fischer.\n\n\u201cAirline staffing challenges continue to result in cancellations and delays across the aviation system,\u201d said Senator Thune. \u201cProviding an opportunity for highly qualified, experienced pilots to continue flying past age 65 is a sensible way to alleviate these challenges while training programs recover from the effects of the pandemic.\u201d\n\n\u201cPeople in Wyoming rely on small rural airports, and I constantly hear from my constituents about cancellations and delays plaguing rural air service, in large part due to a lack of pilots,\u201d said Senator Lummis. \u201cRaising the mandatory retirement age to allow pilots to fly for an additional two years would mitigate some of these shortages and help restore rural air service, while ensuring we still have qualified and capable pilots manning our aircraft.\u201d\n\nWatch Graham\u2019s press conference on the legislation here.\n\n#####", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:20:25Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=3DAF9D27-76C0-4370-B958-4FD90773169A"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0324148461222649, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}