Montreal, Canada: The International Air Transport Association (IATA), representing approximately 350 airlines worldwide, including major Indian carriers like Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet, has proposed increasing the mandatory retirement age for commercial pilots operating multi-pilot flights from 65 to 67 years. This recommendation has been submitted to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) ahead of its 42nd Assembly in September 2025.
IATA’s proposal comes in response to the escalating global demand for air travel, which has outpaced the supply of qualified pilots. The aviation industry has experienced significant growth, leading to a shortage of available pilots. In response, IATA suggests that raising the upper age limit for pilots would help mitigate this issue.
IATA emphasizes that increasing the retirement age to 67 is a “cautious but reasonable step consistent with safety.” The organization highlights that in countries like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, there are no upper age limits for pilots, including those undertaking commercial air transport operations.
The proposal also aligns with ICAO’s initiatives to develop more integrated systems of medical assessment. IATA advocates for standardized medical risk assessment and oversight systems, informed by a consistent set of pilot medical data, to reliably assess the medical risks associated with pilot age. This approach aims to ensure the safe implementation of changes to pilot age limits.
In addition, IATA noted that raising Commercial Air Transport (CAT) pilot age limits to allow more pilots to continue working aligns with 15 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This includes the Next Generation of Aviation Professionals (NGAP) Programme, which aims to ensure a sufficient supply of qualified aviation professionals for the future whether by recruiting older candidates or retaining existing pilots.
