Captain Langford's Last Flight

Don Langford, FedEx Captain, will fly his last flight on Christmas Day. After that, he turns 60, and will be deemed unfit to fly as an airline pilot in this country. I have known Don since he was fighting to become an airline pilot. He is the only person I know who has flown for eight different airlines. They kept going bankrupt and/or downsizing out from under him until he got on with FedEx, and he's been there since. He is or has been an A&P, engineer, cropduster, aircraft builder, distributer of LSA, and master of everything from a J-3 to a 747. You can read all the arguments pro and con about the age sixty rule but it seems real only when a friend becomes suddenly and officially "too old." Even the media got excited when the legendary Hoot Gibson - first an astronaut, then an airline pilot - made his last flight a few weeks ago. But, I don't know Hoot. I do know Don. Actually, Don is one of the lucky ones. FedEx still has some airplanes with three in the cockpit, and Don can legally fly as the third man - the flight engineer. I wonder how it will feel, going from top dog in the cockpit to number three, overnight? I asked Don if he had any last-flight rituals planned, and he said probably not. However, his son, Captain James (Jay) Langford (Embraer 170), is going to fly jumpseat on Don's flight tonight (December 18). That’s gotta be a thrill for both men. I hope they have a great flight, and that Don settles into this latest step in his aviation career.