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Altitude Wealth Desk
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Age 65 is fixed. Plan the years around it.

Money briefings for airline pilots, flight crew and everyone who keeps aviation moving: seniority steps, per diem, loss-of-medical cover, the B-fund, and the years between your last trip and your first Social Security payment.

When you want a professional on the other end of the radio, we hand you off to a licensed advisor who works with aviation careers (pilots and crew).

Find an advisorRun the age-65 bridge

Fixed times on every pilot’s schedule

  • 59½Penalty-free withdrawals
  • 62Earliest Social Security
  • 65Part 121 flying ends · Medicare
  • 67Full retirement age, born 1960 or later
  • 70Delayed credits stop

Ages under US rules. Part 121 is the airline rule; check it is current before you plan around it.

How it works

  1. Pre-flight

    Four short steps: where you are, your finances (ranges are fine), your goals and how to reach you.

  2. Check-in

    We review the request and contact you to confirm the details.

  3. Handoff

    We introduce you to a licensed advisor who works with aviation careers (pilots and crew). What comes next is your decision.

Departures: ten briefings

Each takes about four minutes. Gates follow the topic: C for career stages, B for benefits and insurance, I for investing.

Ten briefings, listed as departures
FlightDestinationGateTimeRemarks
AW 065Planning Your Drawdown Around FAA Age-65 Mandatory RetirementC14 minBridge years
AW 101Airline Pension and 401(k) Structures: Understanding the B-Fund BasicsC24 minA-fund · B-fund
AW 214How Per Diem Actually Works at Tax Time for Flight CrewB14 minAccountable plans
AW 227Loss-of-Medical Insurance: The Coverage Gap Most Pilots UnderestimateB24 minLoss of medical
AW 330Seniority-Based Pay Progression and What It Means for Your Financial PlanC34 minPay steps
AW 347Furlough-Proofing Your Finances Before You Need ToC44 minCash runway
AW 412International Layovers and Tax Residency: What Aviation Crews Should KnowI14 minResidency
AW 518Legacy Carrier vs. Regional Carrier: Comparing Compensation Planning RealitiesC54 minPlan design
AW 603Getting the Most From Your Union Benefit Stack: ALPA Optimization BasicsB34 minElections · deadlines
AW 736Transitioning From Military to Commercial Aviation Pay and BenefitsC64 minTransition math

Every briefing with its summary

The age-65 bridge

Airline flying ends at 65. Social Security can start at 62, pays in full at 67 and stops growing at 70. Medicare starts at 65. Pick the age you stop flying and see how many years each gap leaves you to cover. Open a marker for the rule behind it.

To earliest Social Security
2 yrs
To Medicare
5 yrs
To full retirement age
7 yrs
Years to bridge from age 60
  1. Penalty-free withdrawalsAge 59½
    Open
  2. Earliest Social SecurityAge 62
    2 yrs
  3. Part 121 flying endsAge 65 · check the current rule
    5 yrs left
  4. Medicare eligibilityAge 65
    5 yrs
  5. Full retirement ageAge 67
    7 yrs
  6. Delayed credits stopAge 70
    10 yrs

Stop flying at 60: penalty-free withdrawals at 59½ already reached; 2 years to the earliest Social Security claim at 62; 5 years to Medicare at 65; 7 years to full retirement age at 67; 10 years to the last delayed credit at 70.

Illustration built from the rules named in each note. It shows timing only, never benefit amounts. Your Social Security statement and plan documents have the numbers.

Get matched with an advisor who specializes in aviation careers (pilots and crew)

Answer a few short questions. We review your answers, contact you to confirm what you need, and match you with a licensed financial advisor who specializes in aviation careers (pilots and crew).

What advisors help with

  • Airline retirement plan and pension choices
  • Retirement before Social Security begins
  • Per diem, commuting and crew tax questions
  • Loss-of-medical and income protection
  • A seniority, contract or pay change
  • A full portfolio and wealth review
Advisor matchStep 1 of 4

Where you are and what you need

So we look for someone who works with people like you.

This website is an educational publisher. It does not give personalized advice, recommend securities or manage money. Asking to be matched does not create an advisory relationship: any relationship is between you and the advisor, who will give you their own disclosures before you decide anything. Licensed financial advisors join our network to receive introductions and may pay us for them, through a monthly membership and a fee for each request. The fee does not depend on whether you hire an advisor and is not higher or lower for any particular advisor. Because advisors may pay us, we have a financial interest in the introductions we make. We match you by what you need, and being matched is not a recommendation or rating of any advisor. Nothing here is investment advice.

Please do not include account numbers or details of your medical certificate.

Tools

Both run in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.

  • T1

    The age-65 bridge

    Years between the age you stop flying and Social Security at 62, 67 and 70, Medicare at 65 and penalty-free withdrawals at 59½.

    Back up to the bridge

  • T2

    Furlough runway

    How many months your cash covers if pay stops, drawn as a runway with a board every three months.

    Open the runway

Hold short before you file, retire or change seats.

A licensed advisor who works with aviation careers (pilots and crew) can check the numbers first. File a request and we will arrange the handoff.