Vision requirements for the Army

tboydst

Well-Known Member
I was just wondering if anyone knew the actual vision requirements to fly helicopters in the Army. I was told by an actual Apache pilot that it just has to be corrected to 20/20. On the Army website and other sites it says no worse uncorrected to 20/50. I am correctable to 20/20 but i do not have uncorrected 20/50. Any one have any info on becoming an Army Helicopter pilot please pm me. The recruiters don't seem they want to help so I am reaching out and finding actual Army Helicopter pilots to help me out.
Thanks
 
I was just wondering if anyone knew the actual vision requirements to fly helicopters in the Army. I was told by an actual Apache pilot that it just has to be corrected to 20/20. On the Army website and other sites it says no worse uncorrected to 20/50. I am correctable to 20/20 but i do not have uncorrected 20/50. Any one have any info on becoming an Army Helicopter pilot please pm me. The recruiters don't seem they want to help so I am reaching out and finding actual Army Helicopter pilots to help me out.
Thanks

The reference you're looking for is AR 40-501, Standards for Medical Fitness, Page 43, Paragraph 4-12.
 

Attachments

  • r40_501.pdf
    433.8 KB · Views: 1,275
AND it depends on whether you're planning on being a Warrant or Commissioned Officer. The AR mentioned will outline it all for you...

You most likely will not get any help (generally speaking) from a traditional mall-office recruiter. They have "performance standards" that do not include signing up Officers. Their goals are for enlisted personnel only. You need to get in touch with an Officer recruiter.
 
I flew Apaches and wore contacts. Contact me if you like. I don't believe there's a difference in medical standards for commissioned or warrant guys ... Your best bet is to get your eyes lasered if you want Army route . AF limit is 20/70 I believe . But you also gotta consider your refraction error.


Sent from my iPhone 4S
 
I flew Apaches and wore contacts. Contact me if you like. I don't believe there's a difference in medical standards for commissioned or warrant guys ... Your best bet is to get your eyes lasered if you want Army route . AF limit is 20/70 I believe . But you also gotta consider your refraction error.
Sent from my iPhone 4S
This may be different now but the vision for Warrant Officer used to be uncorrected 20/20 (or better) and for Commissioned correct to 20/20, no worse than 20/50.

Because of this requirement, not one of the flight candidates wore glasses. Of course the first day we actually touched the flight controls, the medical requirement went to Class II. As a result no one had glasses on headed to the stagefield but we had a lot of fellow Candidates come back from the flight line the first day wearing glasses!
 
I flew Apaches and wore contacts. Contact me if you like. I don't believe there's a difference in medical standards for commissioned or warrant guys ... Your best bet is to get your eyes lasered if you want Army route . AF limit is 20/70 I believe . But you also gotta consider your refraction error.


Sent from my iPhone 4S

There is always one standard, like Bushmaster states. The Navy is 20/40, correctable to 20/20...depending on refraction error. Once you're winged, I believe it's 20/200 correctable to 20/20. I still hear from folks who don't know that figher pilots have to have 20/20 uncorrected....yes, 30 years ago they did and actually, any navy pilot had to have the same. The Navy's few flying warrants, same vision standard. I don't see why it would be different in the Army.
 
When I went thru I had many fellows both commissioned and warrant with glasses... I had 20/30 in one eye and 20/25 in the other, flew without glasses all the way to advanced aircraft. Then I had a flight surgeon change and he wrote on my flight physical that I have to wear correction. It really had pissed me off... Didn't want to carry pairs of glasses around ... I applied for the contact lens waiver right away and got those. Today my first class medical says I must wear correction but who cares ... I got contacts :)


Sent from my iPhone 4S
 
AND it depends on whether you're planning on being a Warrant or Commissioned Officer. The AR mentioned will outline it all for you...

I don't see a reference to that in AR 40-501. In chapter 2 it mentions vision requirements to get into West Point and ROTC, but those are general vision reqs (non aviation) and are less stringent than for flight physicals.

You seeing something I'm not?
 
I went through the program in the late 80's. As I stated, it might have changed since then. When I went through, it was a requirement that initial flight Warrant Candiddates could must have 20/20 uncorrected to enter.
I know the entire program got a lot easier; more "friendly" so this seemingly changed too.
 
Back
Top