Special Sunglasses

[NzCaptainAndrew]

Recently needed glasses to fly for commercial ops for my class 1, just slightly shortsighted, -1 aside.

Does anyone know where I can get some tinted glasses for flying in WA or even better, those Flap-style glasses where you can shut the tinted lenses on top of the normal, clear lenses? Been looking online for them but haven't been able to find any.

Thanks

Captandy:cool::cool::cool:

[djpil]

I use Product Information : Pilot Sunglasses : Great Sunglasses : Super Sunglasses : Glare Sunglasses : Best Sunglasses for Men : ExtremeGlareSunglasses.com (http://www.extremeglaresunglasses.com/product_information.cfm)
over my specs - optional headband doesn't interfere with headset.

[NzCaptainAndrew]

I've seen some pilots with these glasses that have like a hinged flap so that they can interchange between their normal prescription glasses and then just lock in their shaded lens on top... then lock them back up when its not too bright..... what are they called?!:{:8

[RadioSaigon]

Due a recent purchase of my 1st ANR headset, I became aware of Lightspeed (http://www.lightspeedaviation.com/Aviator_Sunglasses/subgrouping.htm?cat=32814) making aviator sunglasses that would seem to meet your needs! The clear lenses can be made to your prescription needs, with a drop-down sunglass filter. Naturally they are designed for best performance in conjunction with a headset.

They're pricey -but worth a look!

[Bushfiva]

I had a pair with a magnetically-attached sunglass layer. I didn't really appreciate them at the time until I realised the sunglass layer could just as easily be retrofitted with reading glasses. Outstanding product until I sat on the whole kit and caboodle.

[le Pingouin]

Clip-on or flip-up sunglasses? Clips on to the top of your glasses and flip up and down? Try your local pharmacy for this great looking fashion accessory ;) : http://www.polarizedoptics.com/catalog/images/P900-CL-Series.jpe

[NzCaptainAndrew]

Flip up! ;)

[Metro man]

Might be worth a visit to a CASA DAO, obviously more expensive but if you fly for a living the investment is worth it. They will know which types of lenses are suitable for pilots.

[Capn Bloggs]

Clips on to the top of your glasses and flip up and down? Try your local pharmacy for this great looking fashion accessory
Who cares what they look like? The pax can't get thru the door now, and the cart tarts are 50 years younger than me=not interested in my fashion! :{

[Lodown]

You need a spare set anyway. In my experience, clip-ons and flip-ups are uncomfortable compromises that don't work as well as you would tend to think. Get one regular, clear pair of prescription glasses and a pair of regular, prescription sunglasses. Cheaper in the long run, more flexible, more comfortable and with a HUGE range to choose from. And you'll get glasses that are designed to be used as glasses and sunglasses that are designed to be used as sunglasses.

You'll use the sunglasses 95% of the time while flying and the clear glasses most often at home and after hours. You won't be tied to obsolescence either; meaning when it comes to finding just a replacement clip-on section, you won't have to order a completely new set. You're going to sit on them or put your hoof on them anyway. The hinged sets don't stand up to abuse. You'll lose the clip-on types; you hope it's not down the fuel tank when you peer in to check the level, you don't need additional magnets in the cockpit, and they are very easily bent out of shape so that they no longer clip on.

Personal preference: I like the plastic framed sunglasses with a wrap-around frame (can't get that in flip-ups or clip-ons). They hold up to abuse, tolerate the sweat, provide better protection in the sun particularly around the sides and they can be worn for regular things like mowing the yard, messing about in the garage and a morning on the beach. I like small, wire framed clear glasses. They are compact enough to carry in a shirt pocket and can be worn in other environments like nights out, restaurants and kids' events without looking daggy on my ugly face. Both sets are lighter than the flip-ups/clip-ons and don't hurt the back of my ears after a long time of use.

And if you fly VFR, rose coloured sunglasses definitely make the weather look a lot better...seriously! Yellow, brown and green tints give a macabre look to crappy weather ahead of the nose. If the weather looks manacing in rose coloured sunglasses, then it probably is. (Disclaimer: I like a brown-green tint that I've been using for years.) I tried clip-ons and flip-ups and ditched them. They were just gimmicks I didn't need.

[le Pingouin]

Having a laugh at my own expense as they're what I use. The only young ladies I ferry about are 7 and it's in the family chariot :)

[Keg]

Clip ons are a compromise solution at best. Like lodown I've gone for two completely separate pairs of glasses. I survived with magnetic clip ons for a couple of years and it wasn't a bad option- easy to flip the sunnies attachment off and slide them into the top pocket when on descent and it was starting to get gloomy- but they were a compromise solution as a sunglass. Given that they went over the top of my normal prescription lenses, they weren't of a 'wrap around' style and thus let in lots of light around the side. There were days in cloud when I could barely see due to the glare coming in the side of my sunnies.

About 4 years ago now I went to a dedicated pair of prescription sunnies. I just find the pair of Rayban (or other) frames that I like and pay the obscene amount of money required to pop in some prescription lenses. I've found this to be the best sunglass option and my normal glasses just sit in the top of my shirt. Changing them over takes about 3 seconds. I don't ever put my glasses down anywhere so I've never left them on an aeroplane (yet). They either sit in my shirt of they're in my bag. Never, ever, anywhere else.

[Aimpoint]

:ok: to a second pair of glasses - prescription sunnies. If you go to one of the cheaper glasses retailers, i.e. specsavers, you should be able to get them very cheap (if you have a Medicare care - even cheaper if you have health insurance!).

From personal experience, don't get the sunnies with thick arms as you'll have problems with your headset. The smaller armed glasses keep more sound out. Also avoid paying for a $400 pair of Ray Bans because your optometrist will just have to yank out the lenses anyway and replace them with your prescription. Plus you're going to drop them at some stage anyway! We're not all on Qantas coin like Keg :)

[Lodown]

If you travel to, or know someone in the USA, prescription sunglasses are considerably less expensive and the stores carry a wider range.

[Ex FSO GRIFFO]

You could ask your opthamologist or your glasses supplier, for an opinion on those (photo chromatic ?) 'self-tinting' lenses.

I use them, and they do cut down the glare somewhat, without interfering with general vision.

And, if they're 'on ya face', then you probably won't sit on them / lose them....

Cheers:ok:

[Keg]

Also avoid paying for a $400 pair of Ray Bans because your optometrist will just have to yank out the lenses anyway and replace them with your prescription.

Very true, buy the cheapest set of frames you can. Don't bother going for polaroid lenses (additional cost normally) as they're coming out anyway. My last Raybans (December last year) were $88 USD on a Honolulu trip. Getting the lenses done was about $300 but worth every cent.

[Pinky the pilot]

Agree with Keg and Lodown. :ok: Always flew with prescription sunnies and had the clear ones in a pouch in the flight bag.

These days I need bi focals and found that it was no problem for that either.

[LeadSled]

Guys and Girls,

Forget clip-ons, waste of time.

Also, you need a different light attenuation for flying, (think cataracts and macular degeneration from UV exposure) compared to ground level, and don't, under any circumstances, use glass lenses, polycarbonate only, which is actually more scratch resistant than optical glass.

Your local spectacle-maker is not much use to you, for any glasses, because the assumed focal lengths are NOT what you need flying, as the standard figures assume you are reading a book at less than arms length
.
THE experts for making vision corrected lenses for pilots are Martin X Hogan, Collins St, Melbourne, they can tailor bifocals and tri-focals for the type of aircraft, and whether you are in the left or right seat ---- it makes a difference when looking at the overhead panel on aircraft.
This crowd have been making glasses for military ( both Australia and O/S, including USAF) and civil pilots for many years --- even supplied "sunglasses" to NASA for the early space programs.
Don't buy junk (including expensive fashion junk) for flying, get expert advice, and take it.

There are lots of things that can be missing and you can fly, but eyesight is not one of them.

I personally know of too many pilots who are no longer pilots, because they skimped on eye protection, including good sunglasses, and safety glasses when they should be worn, like mowing the lawn, or working around the garden or workshop/garage.

If you value your flying future, don't be a dumb twit, and skimp on eye protection.

Or skimp, as the case may be, and do the profession a favour by making an early exit for another pursuit, to which your critical mental faculties (or lack thereof) are more suited.

Tootle pip!!

[4Greens]

You can buy what are called transition lenses. These go dark when exposed to sunlight.

[LeadSled]

4Greens,
None of those photochromatic lenses(including Serengeti) provide the degree of light attenuation required for flight, particularly at high altitude.

Right now, we seem to have a significant proportion of the present generation of pilots doing long term damage to their eyesight, by no longer knowing that something that works at ground level, doesn't fit the bill at altitude.

It ain't smart. In the "good old days", DCA and early successors used to run lectures around Australia, aimed at pilots preserving their eyesight.

Some of the older pilots will remember Dr.John Colvin, whose lectures on eye health (for the RAAF and Fleet Air Arm, as well as civil) for pilots were accompanied really 'orrible photographs of former pilots, and the damage they had done to themselves, that rendered them "former", by not taking simple precautions.

Another thing we have lost, with "the regulator" assuming the characteristics we see in CASA, where even what there is of education programs is all about "compliance".

Tootle pip!!

[Aviast]

I've always used Mile High "Aviate" sunnies and they've been great:

Go Soaring / Products / Sunglasses (http://www.gosoaring.com.au/milehigh.php)

They were already pretty cheap I thought, but now I see they're on special!

[bentleg]

Transition (or other auto tintng lenses) dont get dark enough for glare in flight and hardly tint at all when driving a car or flying a high wing. They dont do the job.

I have prescription sunnies and prescription ordinary glasses. It's the way to go.

The DAME handbook (http://www.casa.gov.au/wcmswr/_assets/main/manuals/regulate/dame/080r0201.pdf)(Para 2.1.13) talks about the desireable tint.


Sunglass lenses should protect the eyes from glare while not adversely affecting the visual cues necessary for safe flight. Accordingly, lenses should not be too dark, and should transmit at least 15% of incident light. The tint used should be "neutral density" (N.D.), that is, a greyish tint that does not distort colour perception or adversely affect red signal detection and recognition. The recommended tint is N.D.15.


I have ND15 in my sunnies. Excellent.

[jas24zzk]

+1 prescribed sunnies
+1 ND15....ask for it by name! if they stare at you blankly go somewhere else.

I run my sunnies @ 75% tint, ND15 and they are gold! I am highly light sensitive, so its not unusual to find me driving around with them on when others have their headlights on.

Transitions lenses have their uses, but i found a stable tint to be more usefull. My dad often complains his transitions are never dark enough. (he drives trucks)

If you need a prescription, then forget being a tightarse and buying clip ons unless they are ND15 compliant....cost of a decent pair of those is less than buying precribed sunnies.

I love my prescribed dark goggles and hate my clears.

[4Greens]

Spent a lifetime flying in the military and airline aviation and can still see a fly on an eagles nose miles away. Have to hold a book beyond arms length hence glasses.

[Deaf]

With prescription glasses the internet is your friend. Bifocal tinted glasses at $40 (depending on frames), Crowds like zenni produce stuff that is just as good as the expensive stuff (I have access to suitable test equipment)

[glekichi]

None of those photochromatic lenses(including Serengeti) provide the degree of light attenuation required for flight, particularly at high altitude.

Right now, we seem to have a significant proportion of the present generation of pilots doing long term damage to their eyesight, by no longer knowing that something that works at ground level, doesn't fit the bill at altitude.

Can you be a bit more specific Leadsled?

Light attenuation? They attenuate more light than regular-non tinted lenses in many cases, so are perfectly fine for night use, and as far as UV attenuation goes, they also block 100% of UVA and UVB. The aircraft I fly has perspex side windows so it allows enough of the UV through to activate the tint on transitions properly. (Although the tint is unrelated to the UV filtering.)

I tend to only use them at night and go with the contact lens / sunglass combination the majority of the time during the day, but the times I have used them for flying I find that they are much more suited to it than what they are to driving, i.e. the tint levels always seem to be just right. (The car windows block too much UV for them to be useful.)

[LeadSled]

Crowds like zenni produce stuff that is just as good as the expensive stuff (I have access to suitable test equipment) Deaf,
From a post like that, I can only conclude you are dumb, as well as deaf. Do you even know what the recommended specifications are, and why, for testing?

Do your nice cheap frames have retainers so that a lens cannot be displaced (either into your eye, or fall on the floor at a time determined by Murphie's Law) short of dismantling the frames.

Got the specs. for impact resistance, have you?? For the recommended grade of polycarbonate --- not all polycarbonate lenses are the same?? Got the correct focal length for the lens maker??

Glekichi,
I can't add much more to my previous posts, but the general run of posts on this thread (and previous threads on the same subject) only serve to illustrate the general level of ignorance about sight preservation and eye health, some very specific to pilots, amongst pilots.

A bit of searching around, and contacting Martin X Hogan will help.

With some of the posters it seems, as always, there seems to be a determination to remain willfully ignorant --- potential candidates for the annual aviation Darwin awards.

Tootle pip!!

PS: One of many starting points, but does not cover the recommended design of either frames of lenses for aviation use.
<http://www.pilotfriend.com/aeromed/medical/vision_and_flying.htm>

[Deaf]

Do your nice cheap frames have retainers so that a lens cannot be displaced (either into your eye, or fall on the floor at a time determined by Murphie's Law) short of dismantling the frames.

Glue screws and lens, even without that they are same as expensive stuff

Got the specs. for impact resistance, have you?? For the recommended grade of polycarbonate --- not all polycarbonate lenses are the same??

Stops air rifle slug, good enough for me.

Got the correct focal length for the lens maker??

Optical bench matches prescription

Spectrometer shows suitable absorption (95% mark is at 380-385 range, not much point in doing it in 1/4 nm increments)

[LeadSled]

Deaf,
Thanks for that last post, you have confirmed my thoughts as to your approach to eye health and safety.

I guess it's a free world, if you want to play eyeball roulette, at least it is only your sight that is at risk ---- sadly, it's probable that your attitude is likely to carry through to other issues aviation---- if, in fact, your are a pilot.

With apologies to Billy Wobblenullanulla, Twelfth Night, Act II, Scene V:
"Some are born stupid, some achieve stupidity, and some have stupidity thrust upon them".

Tootle pip!!

[glekichi]

Nothing in your link that was not general knowledge from the human factors syllabus, Leadsled.
Can you at least give us a hint as to what this significant risk to a pilots eye health is that glasses blocking 100% of UVA and UVB do not protect against?

[LeadSled]

Nothing in your link that was not general knowledge from the human factors syllabus,

Quite so, but more than anything, just proves how ineffective CASA Human Factors "training" is, in altering the behavior of many pilots, witness many of the posts on this and previous similar threads. Ignorance as a personally preferred position, for a factor that can so easily have career truncating outcomes, pilots who don't have the common sense to inform themselves about eye heath and sight preservation, is not an attractive quality.

glekichi,
I seriously suggest you do a little more homework on the subject, it ain't all just UVA/B protection. To quote somebody or other: " The truth is out there".

Tootle pip!!