Originally Posted by
megan
That's as it should be Capt.
PD, but not how it always works. A QF A380 SO who has his licence tugged on the say so of a neighbour.
QF in the OZ paper today
Having said that, I'm aware of a number of pilots active in commercial employment who do receive our equivalent of VA benefits on the basis of their service induced PTSD, and the regulator is fully aware. In one case the regulators medical director went into bat for the guy and twisted the arm of the psychs to get a report giving the guy a thumbs up, their reluctance seemingly being "can this come back to bite me in some way". The above link just shows that the regulator, or rather individuals within it, can be a barstewards at times and is the reason some may shy from being open about their state. I doubt the FAA is any different based on what they did to Bob Hoover.
Can't comment on CASA or their response to things like a neighbor's allegations against a QF pilot. They are an entity most assuredly unto themselves. The Bob Hoover incident occurred 25 years ago in '93, and much has happened since including the passage of the Hoover Bill. The FAA took a massive pranging over it, from the grassroots organizations to the halls of Congress. Even so, Hoover's medical was re-instated prior to that although with much hassle and expense over 2 years. What Mr. Hoover didn't do was falsify his applications and, in fact, underwent every test the FAA asked for and more in an effort for complete transparency and to show competency.
I was responding to the unsupported claim by a poster that there's a "growing Witch Hunt", and the recommendation I cited above was the FAA's in direct response in 2016 to questions asked with respect to assessing mental health issues after the German Wings murder/suicide where the perpetrator went out of his way to hide his from his employer and licensing authority since he had done his initial training in the U.S. What CASA does now and what happened to Bob Hoover a quarter century ago has no relationship to how these 4 in the article under indictment for making false statements to the FAA are being held accountable.
The fact that a system doesn't work flawlessly 100% of the time isn't evidence of a "witch hunt", nor is it a a valid excuse to lie or make false statements either within or about the system. Perpetrating paranoia with unsupportable comments drives all parties seeking the best answers apart.
Fact is, people who would willingly risk prison/fines by lying about a disqualifying condition and sign their name to it on the document also can't be trusted to self-evaluate and ground themselves if knowingly unfit to fly due to any of the many other physical and mental health reasons regs require one to do so in between examinations. The FAA smoking them out/exposing lies is an example of them properly doing their jobs.