My Flight Surgeon
Sr. Aviation Medical Examiner
Six or more errors are disqualifying on the Ishihara plates.
There are plates with no numbers.:laff:
There are plates with no numbers.:laff:
Color Vision Letter of Evidence - Status
- Thread starter My Flight Surgeon
- Start date
TXaviator
Well-Known Member
LOL well thats probably why i couldnt find a dang number in it!! :yup:
Murdoughnut
Well sized member
If I remember correctly, I think my letter of evidence (formerly a SODA) said for any class medical - was yours specific to 1st class?
My Flight Surgeon
Sr. Aviation Medical Examiner
Letters of Evidence are valid for any class, SODA's are valid for a Class and any lower class, i.e. a SODA for a Class 1 is valid for a Class 2
I found that every AME I contacted does not understand that they can/should accept an 8500-7 form completed by an eye doctor in lieu of performing their own vision testing during the exam. They adamantly tell me I must take their test, and they will "look at" the 8500-7 only if I fail. How can this be addressed?
My Flight Surgeon
Sr. Aviation Medical Examiner
Talk to your Regional Flight Surgeon.
Coop-814
New Member
Well, looks like I'm screwed. Taking the Farnsworth every year isn't worth gambling with a career on, given the chances that I either fail one year, or that they decide 8 years down the road that it's no longer an option.
I'd but my chances at passing the OCVT + Medical Flight Test at slim to none.
My training stops here. Looks like I'll be finding some crappy office job while figuring out how to afford to enjoy my PPL.
The only job I can think of in aviation would be cropdusting, but my new wife doesn't deserve to sit around and worry everyday while I make crap money doing one of the most hazardous jobs in the US.
I'd but my chances at passing the OCVT + Medical Flight Test at slim to none.
My training stops here. Looks like I'll be finding some crappy office job while figuring out how to afford to enjoy my PPL.
The only job I can think of in aviation would be cropdusting, but my new wife doesn't deserve to sit around and worry everyday while I make crap money doing one of the most hazardous jobs in the US.
Zero1Niner
Well-Known Member
Coop,
Dont give up. How bad is your color deficiency? If you can pass the FALANT, its likely that you'll be able to pass one of the other alternate tests such as the Optec 2000 (thats what I did). If I were you, I would go take as many of those alternate test as you can before making the decision to bail.
You also have the option of doing the new FAA dog and pony show to get the LOE, then you wont have to worry about taking the test each year.
Coop-814
New Member
I hear ya, but my concern is that at anytime the FAA could decide they no longer accept any one of those alternative tests. You have to do them every year, and if 2017 rolls around and they say "no more FALANT/Optec 2000/whatever", I'll be in my late 30's with no career.
I need a letter of evidence, good for life- but it's unlikely I'll get one if I have to jump through all those new hoops outlined in the new regs. I'm pretty sure I won't pass all that stuff.
Do you fly commercially?
I'm in pretty much the same situation as you are. I am debating whether I should give up commercial flying and move on to another career while I'm still in college. The FAA only allows 2 attempts at the OCVT for life, which is a pretty harsh policy. That is not right because the conditions of the test are not in a controlled envoromnent, the lights at different towers are dimmer than others, the time of day, weather etc. I tried this test and failed because the daylight was too bright and the inspectors were not willing to accomidate any other time of day. Now that the FAA has rejected my farnswoth test for a letter of evidence, I am only left with one more try at the OCVT, which is too much for me to risk! From what I understand, the FAA has made this test much harder than when I took it before. The FAA should make everybody do this test if safety is such a concern to them. It has components to it that are not included in regular color vision tests. This is somewhat of a discriminating policy in my book!:banghead:
You didn't read the very first post on this thread very carefully (from doc) which says quote:
(b) A color vision medical flight test (MFT). This is an actual flight test and requires the following:
(1) You must read and correctly interpret in a timely manner aviation instruments or displays, particularly those with colored limitation marks, and colored instrument panel lights, especially marker beacon lights, warning or caution lights, weather displays, etc.
(2) You must recognize terrain and obstructions in a timely manner; select several emergency landing fields, preferably under marginal conditions, and describe the surface (for example, sod, stubble, plowed field, presence of terrain roll or pitch, if any), and also describe how the conclusions were determined, and identify obstructions such as ditches, fences, terraces, low spots, rocks, stumps, and, in particular, any gray, tan, or brown objects in green fields.
(3) You must visually identify in a timely manner the location, color, and significance of aeronautical lights. To minimize the effect of memorizing the color of a light associated with a particular light system, the aviation safety inspector should make every effort to not use the light system name during the flight, but rather to ask you to identify a light color and the significance of as many of the following lights as possible:
(a). Colored lights of other aircraft in the vicinity;
(b). Runway approach lights, including both the approach light system (ALS) and visual glideslope indicators;
(c). Runway edge light system;
(d). Runway end identifier lights;
(e). In-runway lighting (runway centerline [CL] lights, touchdown zone [TDZ] lights, taxiway lead-off lights, and land and hold short lights);
(f). Airport boundary lights;
(g).Taxiway lights (edge lights, CL lights, clearance bar lights, runway guard lights, and stop bar lights;
(h).Red warning lights on television towers, high buildings, stacks, etc.;
(i). Airport beacon lights.
There are several components to this test which obviously have nothing to do with color vision, such as recognizing terrain and obstructions in a timely manner. It is bias of the FAA to make only the minorities with suspected color deficiencies have to complete all the components to this test. And the 2 shot for life deal is not something that can fairly justify all the factors of the test. Some airports have brighter lights on the signal light gun than others, which is not regulated by the FAA as far as I know.
I have done the medical flight test for color vision. The reason they say "location" is obviously you have to see the light in order to identify the color and meaning.
The terrain and obstructions requirement is so you don't select an unfavorable field for an emergency landing. Color is commonly used to identify soft areas in a field.
Something you don't seem to understand is if you fail the plate test YOU HAVE A COLOR DEFICIENCY. It is not a suspected deficiency. If it is a mild deficiency you should have no problem passing the medical flight test. If you it is more than mild you might have trouble.
Good luck with your petition.
Hey guys,
1st off, I'm new here so Howdy to everyone. I am currently a college grad and newly licensed dispatcher looking for work, but also share the same dream of flying for a living. I too am color deficient and am kicking myself for not getting my lifetime LOE before these new rules kicked in. One in particular...
...confused me. Do you still get the two chances during daylight for "no restrictions" or is this new rule saying that if you fail once during daylight you're required to use your second shot at night therefore always having the daylight restriction?
1st off, I'm new here so Howdy to everyone. I am currently a college grad and newly licensed dispatcher looking for work, but also share the same dream of flying for a living. I too am color deficient and am kicking myself for not getting my lifetime LOE before these new rules kicked in. One in particular...
...confused me. Do you still get the two chances during daylight for "no restrictions" or is this new rule saying that if you fail once during daylight you're required to use your second shot at night therefore always having the daylight restriction?
mnixon
Well-Known Member
Dude your thinking way too rationally. This is the FAA we're talking about afterall. Rational and common sense have no business in that place!
My Flight Surgeon
Sr. Aviation Medical Examiner
They say you can pass ANY of the alternate color vision tests, it does not have to be the Farnsworth (although this is the easiest to pass).
The FAA currently requires a color vision test at every flight physical except for those with a Letter of Evidence.
Murdoughnut
Well sized member
I'll be at CAMI in OKC on Tuesday - maybe I can toss some people around and get this changed 
I'll be at CAMI in OKC on Tuesday - maybe I can toss some people around and get this changed
Cool, let us know what you find out!
Well I had given it a shot to petition the FAA to issue my LOE since I submitted the alternate color vision test results before the deadline. Got a reply saying that even though i submitted it before the deadline they couldn't issue them anymore and I'd have to take it every time I renew my medical. Not fair, but that's life I guess.
Now doc, what do you think the chances are of the FAA further restricting things and removing some of these alternate tests?
Now doc, what do you think the chances are of the FAA further restricting things and removing some of these alternate tests?
I suggest that you contact a lawyer that specializes in aviation. The exact same thing happened to me when I sent my Farnsworth test results to the FAA. If the letter you sent was postmarked before the date the policy went into effect, than technically it should be honored. You have a good leg to stand on in this case. Don't get discouraged just because the big man FAA is against you. It's at least worth a try!
I'm not the Doc, but after the FedEx accident the NTSB recommended that all the current color screening methods (including the FALANT) be evaluated and possibly removed as an alternate test. Here is the correspondence between the FAA and NTSB regarding the NTSB's recommendation. The bottom line is that the FAA is still researching the issue.
From the NTSB website:
Safety Recommendation History for A-04-047 FAA
Response Date:
9/13/2004 From:
Addressee Response:
Letter Mail Controlled 9/22/2004 9:38:22 AM MC# 2040571 The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has reviewed the Federal Express accident and the two other accidents in the Board's database where pilots with valid medical qualifications were involved in accidents where deficient color vision was cited as a contributing cause. On August 5, 1980, a Navy F-4J was lost when a severely color deficient pilot failed to interpret correctly the colored navigation lights of other aircraft in the area, leading to the false impression of an impending collision. On August 29, 1992, the pilot of a Mooney 20F, with a "waiver for partial color-blindness to red and green," was startled by a near miss, and decided to land on the first runway he had in sight. The runway he chose was marked ''closed'' with orange crosses on the soil 50 feet beyond each end. The pilot stated that he had checked the NOTAMs and was aware that the N-S runway was closed. The Board listed his limited ability to detect the orange closed marking as a factor. The FAA recognizes that color vision testing methods and the relevance of color vision deficiencies to aviation safety are controversial, both in the United States and worldwide. The FAA is also aware that efforts are underway in some countries to assess color vision testing methods for airmen and possibly develop a color vision test that may be more appropriate than those presently in use. The FAA accepts several color vision screening tests for airmen and employs practical testing with signal lights to determine whether an airman should be permitted to perform aviation duties without limitations. While the FAA does not believe the above mentioned accidents provide compelling evidence that the current color vision discrimination tests are deficient, because a number of these tests were validated years ago and the demands for color vision perception in aviation are changing, the FAA believes it is appropriate to conduct the research recommended by the Board. The FAA anticipates that the research necessary to identify, develop, and validate a new color vision screen that is in compliance with existing Federal regulations will be a substantial effort. Careful consideration will be given to the added risk associated with any performance differences between pilots with normal color vision and those with varying degrees of color vision deficiency. In pursuing this research, FAA must consider other safety research priorities and the availability of resources. The following is a tentative schedule for pursuing the research initiative: · Conduct an extensive review of the literature related to color vision and performance on color-coded displays, with particular attention to the flight environment. (Estimated time for completion is 6 months.) · Establish a group of subject matter experts from the aviation community to review existing and emerging aviation displays and the flight environment to identify systematically the use of color, to identify instances where color is used as a non-redundant cue, and determine whether pilots who have a color vision deficiency may respond in a manner that may compromise safety. (Estimated time for completion is 1 year.) · Use results of the review and analysis to develop a research study that assesses the ability of color vision deficient individuals to respond to information from cockpit displays and the aviation environment, as well as respond to simulated red-white VASI/PAPI lights under time constricted conditions. (Estimated time for completion is 2.5 years.) · These results, along with those of research currently ongoing in other countries, will provide the necessary information regarding the modification of existing standards and the development of a revised testing protocol, including practical tests. (Estimated time for completion is 2.5 years) I will keep the Board informed of the FAA's progress on these safety recommendations.
Response Date:
1/12/2005 From:
NTSB Response:
Pending the results of the FAA's color vision testing research program and appropriate revisions to the color vision testing protocols used for recurrent medical examinations and certifications, Safety Recommendations A-04-46 and -47 are classified "Open--Acceptable Response."
Similar threads
- Locked