airwolf1091

Hi Windforce,

Do you know for sure if the test in switzerland will remove the restriction back here. I mean i would hate to see anybody spend ridiculous amounts of money like i did just for the CAA to turn around and say "sorry" we no longer accept this either..............
If so though it might be a life line to us all

Cheers

Airwolf1091

Shunter

If you are referring to the Spectrolux, yes they will. It is specified as one of 4 acceptable lanterns. They have to accept it.

I failed all the tests at Gatwick, went to Zurich, passed the Spectrolux. Faxed the results to the CAA and had a clean medical by return of post.

I've heard reports that the Aeromed Centre at Dubendorf where I went no longer have a Spectrolux which is a shame. There is another available at a different location, which is slightly less accessible. If you flick back a few pages you should find details of it.

2close

Hi troops,

Further to my post ref Regulation 216/2008 I have today received from the CAA a Trainingcom notice outlining the process for the introduction of the EASA Implementing Rules for the various parts of the new operational requirements.

Part - FCL and Part - Medical are due to go out for consultation at the end of May with the consultation phase due to close in mid-November.

If you visit the EASA website at EASA it provides details of how you can have your say.

Don't waste your chance.

2close

AMEandPPL

What type of problem ? Colour deficiency has to be further divided for certification purposes. At an initial SPL class 2 medical most AME's will simply issue the certificate with the "daytime, VFR, only" limitation on it.
But someone who cannot read through all the ISHIHARA plates can only be said to be "colour deficient". They need further testing ( with an approved lantern - plenty more about those in other PPrune threads ! ) to decide if they are SAFE or UNSAFE. If safe, then an unrestricted class 1 IS possible !

Colour deficiency is NOT amenable to any surgical correction whatsoever, though understandard visual acuities just might be.

FAA standards in the US are generally slightly more lenient than ours. Whether that is a good or bad thing from an air safety point of view is an ENTIRELY different subject . . . . . . ! !

TelBoy

§ 67.103 Eye.

Eye standards for a first-class airman medical certificate are:
(a) Distant visual acuity of 20/20 or better in each eye separately, with or without corrective lenses. If corrective lenses (spectacles or contact lenses) are necessary for 20/20 vision, the person may be eligible only on the condition that corrective lenses are worn while exercising the privileges of an airman certificate.
(b) Near vision of 20/40 or better, Snellen equivalent, at 16 inches in each eye separately, with or without corrective lenses. If age 50 or older, near vision of 20/40 or better, Snellen equivalent, at both 16 inches and 32 inches in each eye separately, with or without corrective lenses.
(c) Ability to perceive those colors necessary for the safe performance of airman duties.
(d) Normal fields of vision.
(e) No acute or chronic pathological condition of either eye or adnexa that interferes with the proper function of an eye, that may reasonably be expected to progress to that degree, or that may reasonably be expected to be aggravated by flying.
(f) Bifoveal fixation and vergence-phoria relationship sufficient to prevent a break in fusion under conditions that may reasonably be expected to occur in performing airman duties. Tests for the factors named in this paragraph are not required except for persons found to have more than 1 prism diopter of hyperphoria, 6 prism diopters of esophoria, or 6 prism diopters of exophoria. If any of these values are exceeded, the Federal Air Surgeon may require the person to be examined by a qualified eye specialist to determine if there is bifoveal fixation and an adequate vergence-phoria relationship. However, if otherwise eligible, the person is issued a medical certificate pending the results of the examination.

As for the colour vision

You have more options than JAA land. The Farnsworth lantern would be worth taking, but if all else fails the FAA will authorise a Tower Signal Test. This is taken on an airfield with an FAA tower and if you can identify the colour signals at 1000 and again at 1500 yards they issue a letter of evidance

brakpanner

I am colour deficient, as i can get through SOME OF THE ISIHARA pages, i have not had a lantern test - (Think i may try that ) Do you know where i can have one done?

brakpanner

Thanks, Will i know there and then ? If i also fail the lantern test is there ANY other way to go about getting a class 1 ?

AMEandPPL

Yes, as far as I know the decision is pretty much instantaneous.

Failing lantern test is more of a problem. There is a huge thread about it on PPrune, with lots of other folks' ideas and experiences. Suggest you read through that one first.

Good luck !

Phenom100

Hi Bucks,

Congrats on the great news,

I found out last month that i too are in the club, but its one club i would rather not be a member of.

I have always had great vision but noticed back in Feb things were not quite right, I had my class 1 renewal in November and passed with flying colours, so they are degrading very quickly, is this normal?

I have just completed my ATPLS and about to start CPL, IR in the next month or so. I am very much so interested in the CR3 procedure you have had, is it approved by Gatwick? is their a period you can NOT fly after having the procedure? Any info you have would be greatly appreciated,

Where did you have the surgery?

invertedspin10

Do the CAA automatically fail you a class 1 becuase you have Kerataconus. surely every case is different and they look at the visual standards with/without correction. Does anyone have any first hand experience of being denied a medical because of Kerataconus?

santskatefly

i had the test at the opticians and im red/green colourblind.
how do i apply for a lantern test and how much would that be roughly?
thanks for your help i cant find this information anywhere strangely enough!

PS: i want to be a commercial airline pilot.

TelBoy

If you have colour vision problems, you will be better looking at the colour vision thread. It does take some going through, but a lot of good information there.

The test costs £40 (up from £28) and must be done at Aviation House, Gatwick. Contact the CAA medical dept to book the test.

They will first test you with ishihara (the dots on card) if you don't get ALL right they will then test you on the Beyne lantern. Fail that and its the Holmes Wright.

Have a look at the JAR's about the tests and feel free to ask questions on the colour vision thread as it will help you to know how you will be tested.

The lanterns will become old hat soon if the CAA have their way and the new CAD test will take over - not sure about that one!!

Good luck to you and hope you pass, but should you not there are a lot of avenues still open to you, again on the colour vision thread you will always get replies.

FlyEJF

Hi

I am also planning on going down to Gatwick to take the Lantern Test. I presume that once i have been tested and assuming i pass then when i go for the full class 1 medical i wont have to retake the lantern test. Can anyone confirm this?

Ed

AMEandPPL

Once the CAA have the status of your colour vision officially on record, it will probably not be tested again. It is believed that the colour vision with which we are born never changes throughout life.
The problem is, of course, that this applies to negative as well as positive results. If, after lantern testing, you are officially deemed to be "UNSAFE" then that is likely to stay with you for life ! A change of CV status has occurred in only a tiny handful of folk over the years.
Good luck with the lantern !

AMEandPPL

That's putting it far too strongly ! Unnecessary, well maybe.

The AME is unlikely to be able to tell whether a colour deficiency is "safe" or "unsafe" SOLELY by using Ishihara plates. That is where
the notorious lantern tests come into play.

Finally, even if the CVD is "unsafe", that is exactly what the VCL (daylight only) limitation is all about !

Suggest you contact the AME again, and ask that the decision is reviewed. Taking your query to the country's AMS might be the next step, but the country is not named . . . . presumably NOT UK ?

TelBoy

Asdrius

For a class 2 medical for private flying (class 3 in USA) all ICAO states will issue a "no night" limitation and it does not matter how many mistakes at ishihara you make.

In the UK we do an initial medical for class 1, this is where colour vision is tested - it is not tested at renewals, not sure about class 2 as it is dome at an AME not the AMC.

It seems like you need to have words with your aviation authority as you already have a colour vision limitation, colour vision alone should not cause you any future problems.

Asdrius

Hello,

Thank you all for your input.

Maybe I put it too strongly, but you have to understand me, I got very upset and emotional after doctor's decision.

The problem I think is that after I made too many mistakes in Ishiara on renewal, doctor now I thinks I have more severe CVD, and not safe even for flying with VCL limitation. He says he can issue licence with limitation to always fly with safety pilot, which is totally unacceptable for me
If you say that from Ishiara plates it is not possible to judge how severe CVD is, I'll have to go to do lantern tests, but closest approved lantern are far away from my location.
Are there any limits how severe CVD have to be, before licence with VCL limitation is not given?

I have booked another appointment with my AME soon, I'm now searching here for some arguments to help me ask review the decision.

The JAR manual I read about tests on renewal I found on the last few pages here: http://www.jaa.nl/licensing/manual/1...thalmology.pdf

I am not from UK.

Shunter

Don't take this to mean it's impossible. It can be done, but it's no easy job.

I failed Ishihara at my initial medical.
I failed Beynes & Holmes/Wright at Gatwick.
I got poked and prodded at City University and it got me nowhere.
I went to Switzerland, passed the Spectrolux and now have a clean Class 1.

There are others who have posted in the past who have also managed to get past this nonsense.

Like 2close says, the guys at the CAA are just applying the rules, and it's those rules which are unfair and need changing.

2close

A JAA Class 2 Medical Certiticate can be issued to any degree of CVD with the JAA deviation VCL (Daytime only) applied. It makes absolutely no difference how many mistakes are made on Ishihara - there is only one JAA pass criterion for Ishihara and that is NIL errors (although that contradicts the Ishihara Pass criterion). If you want the deviation and its restriction removed you have to pass one of the approved lantern tests. Your Lithuanian AME has got it wrong - it sounds like another one of these countries very slow to apply JARs with lots of officials who don't understand them.

For JAA Class 1 Medical Certificates there are no JAA deviations permitted, although the UK CAA has filed its own deviation with JAA whereby the UK issues the VCL deviation on Class 1 medicals but only with an additional deviation NPT (No Public Transport). This permits pilots in the UK to hold CPLs and work in Aerial Work occupations, e.g. instructing, such as myself and many others who read these pages.

Now the multi-million dollar question is whether the EASA Implementing Rules, Acceptable Means of Compliance and/or Guidance Material to EC Regulation 216/2008 Article 7 and its Appendices will permit these national deviations to continue to apply to Class 1 medical certification. If so, all well and good, if not then many CPL FI's are going to be out of work.

Under EASA FCL001 PPL instructors will only be able to instruct for the LAPL (Light Aircraft Pilot Licence). Anything above that, including a PPL, will require a CPL. So lose the medical and lose our livelihood.

The sooner the Implementing Rules, etc. are put out for consultation so we can see what the **** is going on, the better.

2close

2close

Well guys, this is it, what we have been waiting for all this time!!

This is the proposed Acceptable Means of Compliance for colour vision under EASA Regulation 216/2008.


http://www.easa.europa.eu/ws_prod/r/...202008-17c.pdf

Err, is it me or is there no significant difference between this and the current requirements under JAR FCL3?

So, where the hell is the guidance document?

AMC A to MED B.070

COLOUR VISION class 1 medical certificates

1. At revalidation colour vision should be tested on clinical indication.

2. The Ishihara test (24 plate version) is considered passed if the first 15 plates, presented in a random order, are identified without error.

3. Those failing the Ishihara test should be examined either by:

(i) Anomaloscopy (Nagel or equivalent). This test is considered passed if the clour match is trichromatic and the matching range is 4 scale units or less, or by

(ii) Lantern testing. This test is considered passed if the applicant passes without error a test with accepted lanterns.