Tarzanboy From United States of America, joined Sep 2003, 132 posts, RR: 0 Posted (8 years 3 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 3232 times:
My friends
I am a private pilot and I am 20 years old
I hope to go to train for my commercial pilot's license in a couple of years....
I don't wear glasses or contact lenses. I had an eye examination recently and the results are as follows:
My vision at near is N5 (equivalent to 20/20 vision in both eyes)
My vision at far in both eyes is 20/25
The optimetrist told me that i am shortsighted and that i should wear glasses. He said that I should not wear the glasses when I am reading (because my near vision is fine), only outdoors and stuff.
Hearing this news was kind of sad because I really had no former vision problems...
I consulted the FAR/AIM and the FAA vision at far requirements was 20/20 or better with or without corrective lenses and the vision at near was 20/40 or better with or without corrective lenses...
My questions are as follows:
1. Are there any pilots who are doctors here or any one who are or once was in my situation, can you please advise me?
2. Vision at near is for checklists and the cockpit intruments and vision at far is for the runway and outside as a whole...if a person is shortsighted I think it is nonsense to take out your glasses to read your checklists and scan your instruments then to put on your glasses to scan monitor a visual approach....what happens in this case?
3. If there are any First Officers (especially young First Officers) and even Captains that may be reading this who wears glasses - please give me some reassurance - especially if you are shortsighted....
4. What is the complete eye examination procedure used by a Doctor during an FAA First Class Medical?
Copter808 From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 752 posts, RR: 0 Reply 1, posted (8 years 3 months 2 weeks 1 day 8 hours ago) and read 3187 times:
You should have no trouble getting a first class medical, at least by US standards. You will probably be required to wear glasses while operating as a crewmember. I don't believe that you would qualify for military training as a pilot in the US. Stupid rule, they require 20/20 to enter training, and possibly at the completion of flight training. After that, glasses are OK.
I don't know what the airline requirements are, but I don't think there would be a problem. Some of them may have the requirements posted on their websites.
You would probably be best off with bifocals. Corrected for far vision, uncorrected for near.
Do NOT abandon your plans because of a slight vision problem.
Mirrodie From United States of America, joined Apr 2000, 7421 posts, RR: 65 Reply 2, posted (8 years 3 months 2 weeks 1 day 7 hours ago) and read 3185 times:
1. Are there any pilots who are doctors here or any one who are or once was in my situation, can you please advise me?
Hey, I'm an optometrist in NY. I've been in your shoes. With 20/25, I personally would leave my patient alone and without an eyeglass prescription UNLESS you went to him saying the distance was blurry.
Are both parents nearsighted? Genetics might play a role here.
Anyway, if I were you, with 20/25, I would ask him about Vision Therapy as a modality instead. If it is indicated, go that route.
2. Vision at near is for checklists and the cockpit intruments and vision at far is for the runway and outside as a whole...if a person is shortsighted I think it is nonsense to take out your glasses to read your checklists and scan your instruments then to put on your glasses to scan monitor a visual approach....what happens in this case? bifocals are the answer for that modailty but i doubt this applies to you
3. If there are any First Officers (especially young First Officers) and even Captains that may be reading this who wears glasses - please give me some reassurance - especially if you are shortsighted.... not a problem in cockpits, only presents a problem in military aircraft
5. Does this mean the end of my dream? not for commercial flgiht. as for military, depends on the government
VISION THERAPY. ..... It is calling you! Go for it!
Forum moderator 2001-2010; He's a pedantic, pontificating, pretentious bastard, a belligerent old fart, a worthless st
Ralgha From United States of America, joined Nov 1999, 1614 posts, RR: 6 Reply 3, posted (8 years 3 months 2 weeks 1 day 7 hours ago) and read 3179 times:
1. Get the friggen glasses (or contacts).
2. Wear them all the time.
3. Airlines don't care if you need glasses or not, as long as you see 20/20 with them on.
4. "Here's a card to block out one of your eyes." "Read the letters in this row to me." Repeat.
5. No.
Class 3: You need to be breathing.
Class 2: You need a pulse and be breathing.
Class 1: You need to be warm to the touch, have a pulse, and be breathing.
FSPilot747 From United States of America, joined Oct 1999, 3599 posts, RR: 14 Reply 4, posted (8 years 3 months 2 weeks 1 day 7 hours ago) and read 3173 times:
Just got my 1st class. I have relatively bad vision, but am better than 20/20 with contacts. As long as you're correctable to 20/20 you're good to go.
Tito From United States of America, joined Feb 2001, 124 posts, RR: 1 Reply 5, posted (8 years 3 months 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 3045 times:
I'm certainly not an opthamologist but I have been nearsighted and wearing glasses since 15 years old and have always wanted to fly, so it has been a concern for me for many years, and can share some of my practical experience. I've now been a commercial pilot for 11 years and it has never been an issue.
I'm nearsighted with 20/100 uncorrected, 20/15 w/contacts, 20/20 w/glasses. Getting a first class medical is not a problem esp. in the U.S. and many other countries. I'm due to start class with a major airline in Asia next month (on the -400!) and wearing glasses was not a problem with the medical, and their medical exam was MUCH more stringent than the U.S. Seems to me that 20/25 is sooooo close to 20/20 that with some sort of vision exercise therapy you may be able to pass as 20/20 (I have done "vision freedom" in the past and was able to reliably read 20/80 for distant vision. Exercise therapy does seem to work for small improvements, but not the miracle that it is often advertised as.) Be forewarned that (esp. when you are young) once you start wearing glasses for distant vision it is very likely that your UNCORRECTED vision will deteriorate for a couple of years requiring stronger prescriptions, but will stabilize... not a big deal if your already wearing specs. Are you SURE you can't read the 20/20 line with some effort? Also a good idea to monitor your vision health by purchasing an eye chart for use at home, that way you can track your vision as it changes slightly with time of day, nutrition, lighting etc. You will get to know your own eyes, proper nutrition does wonders.
Growing up and wanting to be a pilot meant listening to all kinds of advice from armchair "experts" who really didn't know what they were talking about. Needing perfect uncorrected vision may have been necessary 40 years ago but is a fallacy today. Also.... when have I ever used all that "math and science" in the cockpit? Hmmm.
Bsergonomics From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2002, 462 posts, RR: 0 Reply 6, posted (8 years 3 months 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 3037 times:
A curiosity question:
When I went through the OASC (Officer and Aircrew Selection Centre) for the RAF, I passed each time and was offered any job on the list. One of my friends, on the other hand, was offered any job except for Air Loadmaster, on the grounds of eyesight. While I appreciate that an air loadmaster performing LAPES operations (for example) must be able to identify the drop target quickly and accurately (whilst facing backwards), I am curious to know the scientific (or, at least, official) reason why an Air Loadmaster must have better eyesight than a pilot.
I have worked in the industry for the best part of 10 years and, despite all my questions to pilots, loadmasters and selection board officers, I have yet to receive a satisfactory answer.
Any thoughts?
The definition of a 'Pessimist': an Optimist with experience...
SATL382G From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 7, posted (8 years 3 months 5 days 17 hours ago) and read 3011 times:
In 1980 I was working on my commercial ticket and went for my class 1 medical after I started my flight training. I am nearsighted and knew that going in. What I didn't know and what the medical revealed was that I also had a blue green color defiency. At the time I could've gotten a waiver for the nearsightedness or the color defiency (they gave a practicle light gun test at the tower for color) but NOT both. Not much hope for a commercial pilot who can't fly at night so I stopped working on my commercial ticket, after dropping about a grand on commercial flight training.
I recommend you go for the most stringent medical, resolve any issues that come up in the medical, and then lay down your $$$ for flight training. You'll be OK, there are lots more options now for pilots with vision problems. If modern laser procedures had been available in 1980 my story would have been very different....
Tito From United States of America, joined Feb 2001, 124 posts, RR: 1 Reply 8, posted (8 years 3 months 5 days 14 hours ago) and read 2993 times:
SATL382G brings up a good point about color deficiency, which would be the more difficult problem to have. Many examiners both here and abroad still test for color vision using the Ishihara book (numbers and letters made of colored circles). Here's a useful link to the Ishihara test online:
SATL382G From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 9, posted (8 years 3 months 5 days 13 hours ago) and read 2989 times:
You said it Tito... It was the colored circles that changed my life!!! Even though I was not then and am not now functionally color blind. I would have passed the practical color vision test BTW, had to take it later for my Air Force flight line drivers card. Passed it with flying "colors"....
If the same thing happened to me now, I'd just get "lasered" and then get the color vision waivered. Heck the Air Force is even paying for folks to get the laser surgery now, although I'm not sure if they'd do it for pilots.
DeltaGuy From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 10, posted (8 years 3 months 5 days 13 hours ago) and read 2988 times:
For several years, I was 20/15 far and 20/10 near...my eyeswere damn good.
After being in high school and college for a few years, and taking courses that required a ton of reading (plus all my additional fun reading), my far vision went to 20/40...I was devistated...my near was 20/10 as before however.
I started exercising my eyes alot more...when reading, looking up every 5 or so minutes. When riding in a car/bus/plane, trying to look out as far as I could for hours at a time, just trying to re-adjust them slowly over time. When I was going for my Department of Defense Medical Exam, I had 20/25 far, for which the flight surgeon granted me a waiver so I could continue competing for the Navy. When I went for my Third Class FAA exam, my eyes were 20/20 far, 20/15 near....didn't mind that I lost some of the near, but thrilled I got some of the far back.
Remember, as you get older, you go more and more farsighted...so it'll level out eventually for ya. My dad can't even read the instruments anymore without glasses, and he's flying your 737
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