taking over, nigel:
where did you hear/read about the long term hearing loss from wind noise alone? or is it just ambient noise (engines,etc) in general? any web/pprune links? as for the noise-canceling headsets - surely on turboprops, but on heavies? replacing the one-ear itty-bitty headphone with a bulky pair of mufflers? any specific airline, headset brand? for the hearing loss, any numbers/length of time? one would imagine that whatever the damage after, say, 20 yrs on the job, it would still be within the less-strict/commensurate with age hearing loss criteria for medical...