Maverick25

Normally when do we do a Class 1 medical test ?

747aus

does anyone know of or have expieriences pilots with hearing loss and still being able to hold a class 1 med? i have a moderate hearing loss mostly at high frequency. i can hear a standard voice easilly

AvMed.IN

Considering that the reduced hearing you are referring to, is due to aging (aka presbyacusis), a loss of 35 dBA and 50 dBA is considered acceptable for lower (500, 1000 and 2000 Hz) and higher (3000Hz) respectively.

In case of loss higher than the figures stated above, an experienced pilot may be considered fit in case he has 'normal' hearing against a background noise akin to cockpit noise. This can be tested by speech discrimination lab or may even be conducted in flight.

hope it helps!

Bullethead

G'day 747aus,

Have a look here mate, it is a link to the DAME handbook and has got all the info you need.

Civil Aviation Safety Authority - Designated Aviation Medical Examiner's Handbook

Regards,
BH.

BritishGuy

I have a similar problem. I've passed all phases of the interview with a mid-eastern airline and apparently I've been told that in my left ear I have moderate hearing loss (up to 60dbs I think the Dr said). I didn't realize it was so bad as I fly at the moment for an airline on my FAA license and though I've felt my left ear is weak, I can still hear from it.

Anyway, from the UAE GCAA, do I have any hope of passing an Initial Class one medical or not?

euromember

For info read this JAA page.

http://www.jaa.nl/licensing/JAA%20Ma...20Amdt%206.pdf

aviatron

Hi
I recently got my CPL and with my medical coming up I decided to do a mock Hearing test because last year the audiogram showed a slight hearing loss and my Class 1 medical certificate states I should use ear plugs in noisy environment.
Well the hearing test shows that my hearing loss has increased. I can only hear sounds higher than 55 dB between 4kHz and 8kHz in both the ears but my hearing is in normal range upto 3kHz.
This news has been a big shocker to me..... and just want to know what are going to be the consequences of being in this situation?
Would it be possible to continue as a CPL holder?

Loose rivets

Protect your hearing at all times. Even cinemas are dangerous these days. I carry ear plugs anywhere there might be significant noise.

Even in aircraft, I plug my ears slightly, then turn up the volume a little bit. It really does help the signal to noise ratio.

Right now, you have hearing at the important range for flying.

I feel you should see a specialist. There might be some infection that's treatable.

Do you have any high frequency whistle/tinnitus? Any vertigo? (lateral visual effect.)

aviatron

Thank you for the reply Loose Rivets, I am taking all the necessary precautions to protect my hearing and not suffering from tinnitus. I have nasty cold which blocks my eustachian tube almost all day everyday. Do you know of any instances where people have recovered from High frequency hearing loss?

homonculus

Hearing loss with age is normal, especially high frequency. It rarely risks your medical provided you can hear the radio

But you cant have a permanent cold. You may well have otitis media or glue ear - go see your GP who can look in your ear and instantly diagnose it. Treatment is simple

Most AMEs look in the ear before doing an audiogram and possibly wouldnt go ahead until you are treated anyhow!

Takeoff53

Since years I have a problem with my hearing and the last test was not looking very good. However, two days ago I got my EASA class 1 medical but the doctor was more then gentle. Next week I have to go for my FAA class 2 and I hope this AME (I do not know him) is as well a decent chap.

Getting 60 this year I would like to have a chance to keep my EASA and FAA tickets for another 5 years but the chances regarding my hearing are against. The ENT doc means, that I should slowly start to consider hearing aids and still refusing this mentally, longer term I see no other way around. It's not only the flying, conversations in a reverberating room with a group of people and addtional background noise is getting a challenge more and more.

The regulation (EASA and FAA) allow hearing aids for pilots. Does anyone in the community here fly with hearing aids? Any inputs what to look for? Thanks for any advice!

Takeoff53

Well, this thread got 239 hits until now but it looks like no other pilot in the community has a hearing aid or related problems?

A new posting came up regarding tinnitus, which goes a little bit in the same direction I have a mild form tinnitus and the good side of a hearing aid would be, the (my!) tinnitus could be treated with a hearing aid.

Tomorrow my next medical check for the FFA medical is up

Takeoff53

FAA medical (Class 2) is done, whispered speech test was achievable. One more year but I have to find a solution.

airsmiles

I'm not a pilot but have been wearing hearing aids since I was 19, after I was ill. Out of interest, why are you reticent about trying them?

Takeoff53

To accept glasses to correct the eyesight is common but with hearing aids it's a different story. I guess this is a huge step towards getting old and/or the feeling to be handicapped. And I assume, it's not as convenient to use like glasses? Glasses you may take off in a second when needed but how about hearing aids?

Bohh

Hello everyone.

I am 21 year old guy who currently is studying business management degree in uni. However after my degree is finished I am planning to work hard, save money and try to seek career in aviation. Being pilot is only thing I ever wanted to be. However it is very big investment for me and I have some concerns about my hearing.

Back story: when I was 16-17 years old I was stupid enough to blast ~150 rounds out of 9mm pistol without any sort of hearing protection. After that I realised I couldn't hear at all with my left hear and I was feeling dizzy, unbalanced. This one evening of stupidity was enough for me to get ear nerves inflammation in my left ear which was caused by "acoustic trauma". They hospitalized me and managed to get back 90% of my hearing. Balance is all good too. I ended up with loss of hearing in higher frequencies and constant high pitch ringing in my left ear.

Now I became almost paranoid about my hearing. I always have pair of ear plugs in my wallet in case I go to some noisy place.

Now from what I understand I am still eligible for first class medical. Here is my audiogram I did with iphone. I know it is not 100% accurate but it is very close to the audiogram I have from the doc.



However I am concerned about the future. From what I heard pilot loose hearing constantly because of constant noise. I am afraid that after couple of years I will loose my hearing and will no longer be eligible to fly.

So I have 3 basic questions:
1) Am I still eligible for 1st class medical? Will my slight loss of hearing and tinnitus can be a barrier?
2) How likely is it that I will loose such portion of my hearing while flying that I will no longer be eligible for class 1 medical?
3) Is there any special ways to protect my weaker ear while flying commercially in the aircraft? Do airline companies allow to use your own good noise cancelling headsets while flying a commercial liner?

Thank you very much
Sincerely,
Paul

cavortingcheetah

Here's an answer from a pilot who has, so far, just managed to avoid having to have a hearing aid shoved into the bottom of a flight bag.
South African Class 1 rules prevail here, no idea about Australian rules.
1. The tinnitus is not a medical consideration per se and if the required standard for a Class 1 can be met with the wearing of a hearing aid then that would satisfy the authority.
2. Hearing is likely to deteriorate in the cockpit environment at a faster rate than were you working in a public library. You should perhaps consider loss of licence insurance although hearing might be excluded from such cover.
3. Airlines do not generally seem to like pilots using their own headsets. Interference between headsets in the cockpit can cause problems of communication. Expect the response to be negative.
I would suggest that you get grasp the nettle firmly in both hands and get yourself an initial Class 1 medical check. I suppose it would cost a couple of hundred dollars but it may lay to rest your concerns, one way or the other.
Alternatively, you could find an AME approved for Private Pilot medicals and do one of those. It seems reasonable to suppose that any half decent AME would know whether your present hearing capabilities would preclude a Class 1.
Here's something from England.

Noise & Communication on the Flt Deck

742

I am a pilot, not a medical professional, and I am locatedin the United States.

With that said, cavortingcheetah’s advice fits what I wouldoffer, with the exception that my experience has been that my various employershave never cared about what headset I used. A bigger problem over the years has been fellow pilots who are unwillingto use the intercom, and want the inboard ear “open” so we can yell back andforth. Grrrrr.

IMO the headset issue comes down to culture, both companyand country. On the upside the youngerpilots seem to be smarter about this issue and are more likely to carry a goodheadset and use the intercom, so the future is promising.

All of which boils down to “it varies” as the answer to yourheadset question. But a workaround withcompany headsets (which always seem to be cheap) is foam earplugs and justcrank the volume up a bit.

obgraham

Along the lines of what Cheetah said, here is the way a lot of us on US chat boards advise prospective pilots wondering about medical problems:

Find a local AME, preferably one with lots of Class I experience, make an appointment for a medical consultation and present the matter to him/her for his evaluation/opinion. Do NOT request an actual medical certification, and do NOT start to fill in the application form.

Once you have his opinion, for which you paid him, you are in a better position to decide on your investment in training.

It seems likely a similar plan would work in Oz, but of that I am not certain.

AQIS Boigu

I agree with the above recommendation...

When I wanted to start my career I did exactly the same with my problem (quite frankly every GP told me that I would never be able to fly) - I sat down with an AME and explained the situation; he sent me to a specialist and it came back good...only then we started the official certification process and I passed...started in GA and many years later I am flying a wide body...in your case you might pass the CASA hearing test without any problems anyway...only an AME would know.

One thing I also learnt is that particularly GPs don't know **** about anything more complicated than cough and flu - hence there are specialists.

Also please keep in mind that the AME only gathers information and passes it on to CASA for the certification, also CASA don't have a lot of specialists in their office either - they normally just rely on external info as well...and one more last advice - don't lie on the form but don't volunteer too much information either if you know what I mean.

Good luck...PM if you got more questions...