Chances of becoming a military pilot

tboydst

tboydst

Well-Known Member
I am currently going to school (Jacksonville University) studying aviation operations, my dream is to become a fighter/military pilot but have recently discovered that i have 20/150 vision. This is way outside the limits for becoming a pilot in the military. Do i abandoned my dreams or is there something i can do? I would really like actual military pilots answer this question and others for me. I would do anything to fly in the military just don't know if it is possible. Thanks
 
Probably depends on what service you are looking at. Navy/USMC standards are 20/40 correctable to 20/20 (with some other limitations associated with astigmatism and color blindness). LASIK as well as LASEK are both now approved for waivers. Essentially, you get the surgery, there is a wait period to let your eyes stabilize, and then you get seen by a military flight doc/optomitrist to make the determination. The waiver is generally a formality, but they do need to ensure that your eyes meet the standards listed above. I have many friends/squadronmattes who have done this successfully. I'm not an AF guy, so I can't comment to what their requirements are, but those are ours.
 
///AMG said:
LASIK as well as LASEK are both now approved for waivers. Essentially, you get the surgery, there is a wait period to let your eyes stabilize, and then you get seen by a military flight doc/optomitrist to make the determination. The waiver is generally a formality, but they do need to ensure that your eyes meet the standards listed above.
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LASIK is NOT an approved form of corrective eye surgery. The military accepts PRK only and even after that you still have to wait a year and get a waiver. Its a gamble but if you really want to be a military pilot, get the PRK done sooner rather than later. Even if you're not accepted at least you still have 20/20 vision. Also, the chances of flying a fighter after corrective eye surgery is pretty close to zero unless your dad is a senator or something. You're probably going to be looking at cargo or tanker.

I applied to AF UPT last year and was rejected because my vision was not within the "uncorrected" limitations.
 
redwings191 said:
LASIK is NOT an approved form of corrective eye surgery. The military accepts PRK only and even after that you still have to wait a year and get a waiver. Its a gamble but if you really want to be a military pilot, get the PRK done sooner rather than later. Even if you're not accepted at least you still have 20/20 vision. Also, the chances of flying a fighter after corrective eye surgery is pretty close to zero unless your dad is a senator or something. You're probably going to be looking at cargo or tanker.
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Is this just AF? I don't have experience wit this, but I thought I heard that LASIK was ok for AF as well...I'm inclined to believe AMG about the Navy requirements...since he's, you know, in the Navy and all....And where are you getting the Cargo/Tanker stuff? AMG I'm pretty sure is a fighter guy, and he says he has squadron mates that had LASIK...
 
BeRich said:
Is this just AF?
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Yeah that was for the Air Force. Those were the rules when I was going through the application process. LASIK was an automatic DQ. The reason they accept PRK over LASIK is because PRK doesn't require an actual incision which could, potentially, lead to separation of the cornea at high G-forces (fighters). Unless something has changed in the last 6 months that I am not aware of.

frog_flyer said:
I suppose a good starting point is how do you "recently discover" that you have bad vision?
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:yeahthat:
 
redwings191 said:
LASIK is NOT an approved form of corrective eye surgery. The military accepts PRK only and even after that you still have to wait a year and get a waiver. Its a gamble but if you really want to be a military pilot, get the PRK done sooner rather than later. Even if you're not accepted at least you still have 20/20 vision. Also, the chances of flying a fighter after corrective eye surgery is pretty close to zero unless your dad is a senator or something. You're probably going to be looking at cargo or tanker.

I applied to AF UPT last year and was rejected because my vision was not within the "uncorrected" limitations.
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I can't speak for the AF, but the Navy/USMC recently approved LASIK as well, following about a 1 yr trial program for active duty winged folks. I know a couple folks who are getting LASIK over the holidays on the Navy's dime (aviator/squadronmatte types)

And yeah, if you applied a while back, then what you heard would have also been the case for us.....the policy recently changed in other words.
 
///AMG said:
I can't speak for the AF, but the Navy/USMC recently approved LASIK as well, following about a 1 yr trial program for active duty winged folks. I know a couple folks who are getting LASIK over the holidays on the Navy's dime (aviator/squadronmatte types)

And yeah, if you applied a while back, then what you heard would have also been the case for us.....the policy recently changed in other words.
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Wow, good to know. Might consider giving it another shot then. Thanks for the update.
 
LASIK is approved for the Air Force now. There are pre-op limits though and you have to wait 1 year before you can go to Brooks for your physical.
 
tboydst said:
I am currently going to school (Jacksonville University) studying aviation operations, my dream is to become a fighter/military pilot but have recently discovered that i have 20/150 vision. This is way outside the limits for becoming a pilot in the military. Do i abandoned my dreams or is there something i can do? I would really like actual military pilots answer this question and others for me. I would do anything to fly in the military just don't know if it is possible. Thanks
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If you really would do anything to fly in the military, there is another way. Most of my NFO/Nav brethren have the same problem with eyesight as you, although some were student avaitors who had trouble with aircraft control and a few who didn't fall into either category.
 
I would look at joint a Guard unit. When u take the physical to join, they will tell u if you qualify with a waiver. The Guard is pretty good about getting waivers for members of their unit. Then u can enlist in the unit, finish your degree and compete for a pilot slot.
 
O&M said:
EVERY question has probably been answered a gazillion times. If you're just gonna tell 'em "Do a search" then what would be the point of taking new posts? Just shut the thing down and let people search the archives.
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One wants to be in the military, they should show a little personal initiative without having to be spoon fed everything. Thats the point. Especially with in depth questions that don't have a simple answer of a few sentences.
 
MikeD said:
One wants to be in the military, they should show a little personal initiative without having to be spoon fed everything. Thats the point. Especially with in depth questions that don't have a simple answer of a few sentences.
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Whooa Trigger, are we forgetting those people who helped us get where we are today? I am sure before the Internet we could seek out military people and ask them directly. Now we rely on the internet. That is good. I propose it is alot more difficult to get answers today for a couple of reasons: 1. there is alot of bad info on the internet. You don't know the qualifications of the poster, he may be the squadron janitor (or the janitor from scrubs, in which case he is knowlegable). 2. Medical qualifications and all standards are more specific than they used to be, and there are more waivers available. 3. Even medical professionals are confused by the policies and procedures. 4. In general, and this is my main concern: There is a declining number of military people and people with military experience in the population. Therefore, it is more difficult to get first hand info about the military. When I went to USAF in 1972, 80% of my class had direct relatives that had served in the military, thru WWII like my Dad, Korea or the draft. A major concern was the transition to the all volunteer force. Since those who serve tend to come from familes with someone who served, and the draft went away and the military shrunk after Vietnam, it was a major concern where we would get qualified people 30 years on. So, we are there. With a small military (the USAF has fewer Airplanes than we had fighters when I came on AD), it is had to find someone with direct experience. So, I say, please ask all the questions you want, no matter how many times they have been answered. and 5. the answers keep changing with policy changes, so ask away! 6. perhaps asking direct focused questions on the Internet is showing initiative! I think it is.
 
You don't even need to search the internet, just use the search function here on this very site. I mean, the person came here. There is a search function. There's alot of great info that people took a long time to write, right here in this very forum, and its very current info. Take one minute and use that function available to you. If you have further questions and/or can't find the answer, then ask for new or further information. Thats using some personal initiative.....not just showing up and asking. Anyone can do that.

Its a very simple thing to do. Getting yourself more informed on the subject. It's not like a library where you have to look all up and down the aisles, type into the search engine on this very site, and alot of great info pops up.

Thats the difference between asking a question that requires a simple answer, and asking one that requires a long detailed answer, when the answer(s) likely already exist. Lift a finger just a bit and don't be lazy. Thats all thats being said. It's no different than interviewing for an airline job......you're not going to go in cold turkey to the interview, you're going to do some homework about the company you wish to join....I mean, if you want a shot at the job.
 
FightingFalconInstructor said:
.... 1. there is alot of bad info on the internet. You don't know the qualifications of the poster, he may be the squadron janitor (or the janitor from scrubs, in which case he is knowlegable). 2. Medical qualifications and all standards are more specific than they used to be, and there are more waivers available. 3. Even medical professionals are confused by the policies and procedures....
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Case in point - the fellow who posted above that LASIK is not allowed for the Air Force.....seriously? Even a simple Google search reveals that LASIK (in ALL FORMS) has been approved for FC1 flyers since 2007.

Not to mention a quick trip to Baseops.net reveals TONS of threads related to the ins-and-outs of the RS (Refractive Surgery) Waiver.

This type of mis-information is why people NEED to take more of a proactive approach to gathering information and not just ask random strangers on the internet. If you have a question related to military rules and regs, the best bet is to GET THE REG AND READ IT.

Like FFI said, even most military medical SQ's are not up to date on the regs.
 
redwings191 said:
LASIK is NOT an approved form of corrective eye surgery. The military accepts PRK only and even after that you still have to wait a year and get a waiver. Its a gamble but if you really want to be a military pilot, get the PRK done sooner rather than later. Even if you're not accepted at least you still have 20/20 vision. Also, the chances of flying a fighter after corrective eye surgery is pretty close to zero unless your dad is a senator or something. You're probably going to be looking at cargo or tanker.

I applied to AF UPT last year and was rejected because my vision was not within the "uncorrected" limitations.
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There are plenty of Army Aviators flying Chinooks and Kiowas around Iraq and Afghanistan on LASEK waivers that would be surprised to learn that there is no such thing as a LASEK waiver for military pilots. You should probably let them know. As for flying fighters with a corrective surgery waiver: I am saddened to learn that when I put down "Jets" in my track selection, the thing they will look at is whether or not I had eye surgery or my dad is a senator. They told us when we checked in to primary our tracks will be chosen by solely and strictly by the needs of the Corps, our grades, and our preference, in that order. The lying bastards! Thanks for setting me straight.
 
BAMCIS said:
As for flying fighters with a corrective surgery waiver: I am saddened to learn that when I put down "Jets" in my track selection, the thing they will look at is whether or not I had eye surgery or my dad is a senator. They told us when we checked in to primary our tracks will be chosen by solely and strictly by the needs of the Corps, our grades, and our preference, in that order. The lying bastards! Thanks for setting me straight.
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LOL
 
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