chriscarr13

Hi guys,

I am currently in my final year at University and really want to pursue a career afterwards as a commercial airline pilot.

However, looking into it I need some thoughts about whether I'm likely to pass the medical test.

I am a physically fit 21 year old who plays a lot of sport etc.-however, I have had a detached retina in my left eye in the past-the vision is now fine, but I do wear contact lenses to correct my short sightedness, which is -6.00 in my left eye and -5.75 in my right-is there a limit to how short sighted you can be in order to pass the medical?

I'm a bit worried that this may prevent me from passing-any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks,

Chris

rickair7777

For the United States...

You have to be correctable to 20/20 for distance vision and 20/40 for near vision. Glasses or contacts are allowed.

The numbers you mention are spherical errors, and are used for measuring your prescription. The FAA does not normally consider them for medical certification, they simply show you an eye chart which you must read to the 20/20 level (with glasses if needed).

However...6.00 is a very large refractive error. Before you embark on a pilot career you might want to consult an ophthalmologist and get some advice about what your vision is likely to do as you age. Not only do you need to pass the vision test today, but you need to pass it at age 64 1/2! You might also consider your family history, ie can your parents still see 20/20. The piloting profession consists of paying dues while you are young, and hopefully getting a return on that investment in the later years of your career. You want to be reasonably sure that you will be able to reap the benefits of seniority when you are older.

I think the US military does have a refractive error limit, but not certain what it is...I would guess around 4.00.

Twin Wasp

When you put your contacts in, what's your vision? That's all that matters. If you are more than 20/100, there may be a one time exam to make sure everything is stable. Your medical will just come with a restriction like "Holder must wear corrective lenses." I've flown with a guy with just one eye - he had to prove he could land the plane safely and got a wavier.

chriscarr13

Thanks very much for your replies guys, really appreciate them.

Rickair, that sounds like good advice-my Dad has pretty bad short sightedness, but his sight with glasses is fine. I am actually from the UK, so would be doing the medical here.

I ask about the refractive error because on the flying academy website, it says the following for a class 1 medical certificate:

Distance Vision - Your visual acuity (measured by your ability to see, in this case, lines of letters on a chart at 6 metres) must be at least 6/9 in each eye separately and 6/6 using both eyes together, with or without glasses or contact lenses (correction). If you need correction the refractive error (the amount of correction) must not exceed +5.00 dioptres of long sight or -6.00 dioptres of short sight. This is in the most ametropic meridian (taking into account any astigmatism). Astigmatism must not exceed 2.00 dioptres. The difference in correction between each eye (anisometropia) must not be more than 2.00 dioptres. Your optometrist will be able to explain these terms.
Near Vision - On the standard near vision eye chart you must be able to read the N5 print between 30 and 50 cm and the N14 print at 100 cm, with or without correction.
Contact Lenses - You may wear contact lenses as a professional pilot, but they must be monofocal, nontinted and for distant vision (not to correct near vision). Any contact lenses should be brought to the examination.
Eye surgery - Refractive surgery entails unfitness. Cataract surgery, retinal surgery and glaucoma surgery entail unfitness. A fit assessment may be considered by the AMS (see JAR - FCL 3, paragraph 6 and paragraph 7, Appendix 13 to Subpart B).


I've obviously had retinal surgery, so is this a problem? It also says the correction should not be worse than -6.00-these are the things that are worrying me slightly-may it be possible to get a waiver for these problems?

Cheers

rickair7777

I'm not familiar with UK/European medical requirements, but here is my take based on what you quoted...

6/6 is the same as 20/20 in the US (6 meters = 20 feet). Looks the UK is more lenient in that each eye alone does not need to be 6/6, but only 6/9. Sounds like you are OK on this.

As for refractive error, you are what we call "nearsighted" in the US, with a large negative refractive error. The limit you quoted is -6.00, and you meet that requirement at this time. The problem is that one eye is exactly at the limit, and the other is near the limit...there is a possibility that as you age it will get worse, and disqualify you. It's a tough call in your case, I think many people who require correction find that their vision changes between late teens and early twenties and then stabilizes. That was my experience, my vision has not changed since age 23 (I am over 40). But you are still in your early 20's and there are no guarantees...I guess it comes down to how much risk you are willing to accept.

As for surgery, it's pretty clear that it is disqualifying, but in the US you can often get a waiver for conditions which are stable and do not actually pose a safety risk. Your quote mentions a "fit assessment"...that sounds like a waiver to me, but I have no idea how difficult they are to obtain in the UK.

If waivers are easy to get, then you would probably be OK on the retinal surgery. Also, you could either get a waiver if your refractive error eventually drifts over -6.00, or you could get refractive surgery (common in the US) to correct the refractive error and then get a waiver for that surgery. You need to find a medical consultant in the UK who is familiar with aviation medicine in your country. You might try this website: pprune.org

In your case I think all really comes down to how easy or difficult it is to get a waiver (fit assessment). If they are reasonable about those, then you might be in good shape.

Good Luck.

chriscarr13

Yeah I agree with a lot that you are saying here rickair....

My eye which I had surgery on is now stable, and actually got a little bit betterwhen I last went for a checkup-hopefully this will mean I might be Ok.

I think I need to see someone who could tell me whether I would pass the medical or not, because it costs around £300 doesn't it, so don't want to waste money if I fail.

When I last had my eye checked at the hospital, the ophthalmologist said that my left eye would be OK to drive with, even if it was my only eye, so I think that's a good sign?

I don't know, any more advice would be really good.

Chris

rickair7777

You need to talk to someone familiar with UK aviation medicine...I don't even know what a medical costs over there. It is about $100 here.

chriscarr13

Thanks for your thoughts rickair...

One other question-how do I know how bad my astigmatism is? I didn't even realise I had one, but on my contact lense box it says for astigmatism....should it say on the box?

Thanks

rickair7777

Look at your prescription:

A basic refractive error will look like this: -3.25

This means that your error is constant in that eye.

A refractive error with an astigmatism would look like this: -3.25 +1.25 x 90

This means that in addition to the basic spherical error, you have a additional error (kind of like a bump on the cornea) with a value of +1.25 located at 90 degrees.