To fly commercially, you need a Class One medical.
To get a class One medical, your eyesight must be of the following standard at the initial examination:
General Requirements
Your eyes and their adnexa (surrounding structures) must function normally.
Distant Vision
Your visual acuity (the ability to see 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 wear correction the refractive error must not exceed +3.00 to -3.00 dioptres in the most ametropic meridian (the worst axis - taking into account any astigmatism). Astigmatism must not exceed 2.00 dioptres. The difference in refractive error between each eye (anisometropia) must not be more than 2.00 dioptres.
However, if you are over 25 years old, or can show stability of refraction over the last 3 years (an unchanged glasses’ prescription), a refractive error between -3.00 and -5.00 dioptres in the most ametropic meridian is acceptable.
You may wear contact lenses as a professional pilot. If you do wear contact lenses, you should bring to your Class 1 examination a report from an optometrist, to include the following:
visual acuity with and without contact lenses and spectacles
contact lens and spectacle prescriptions;
confirmation that the contact lenses have been worn constantly and successfully for over eight hours a day over a period of at least one month.
Contact lenses should be removed at least 48 hours before the initial Class 1 medical examination. Bifocal contact lenses are not acceptable. You must bring your current glasses and contact lenses to the examination.
If you have had refractive surgery, Class 1 certification can be considered one year after surgery noting that:
the pre-operative refraction should not have exceeded -5.00 dioptres;
correction of long-sight is not acceptable;
an assessment by a specialist at Gatwick (Aeromedical Centre) will be required.
Near Vision
You must be able to read on the standard ophthalmology chart: N5 print at a distance between 30-50cms and N14 print at 100cms, with or without correction.
Colour Vision
You will be tested for normal colour vision with Ishihara Plates. If you fail the Ishihara test you will need to pass the Holmes Wright lantern test in order to gain a Class 1 certificate.
Eye Function
You must have normal fields of vision.
You must not suffer from double vision.
Any degree of heterophoria (eye muscle imbalance) in excess of:
8D exo, 6D eso or 1D hyperphoria - measured at 6m
and
12D exo, 6D eso or 1D hyperphoria - measured at 33cms
will require further evaluation by an aviation ophthalmologist at Gatwick.
CAA Class One eyesight requirements
and their home page for more licensing info
[ 19 August 2001: Message edited by: foghorn ]