Class 1

A

atomic20v

New Member
Follow-up to an old-thread I posted last year: http://forums.jetcareers.com/ask-fl...sing-career-aviation-medicine.html#post781996

Since then I focused on applying to med school and managed to get into a very well-respected MD program scheduled to start in the fall. Although now I keep coming back to wanting to finish my flight training instead (on the side while I work full-time) and then keep working until someone hires me to fly full time. I'm really torn between the two career paths right now and am lucky enough to have a very good fallback job/career in engineering that allows me some flexibility with my decision.

I never applied for the class I last year because I got too tied up in the med school admissions process. My class III is still valid and I've probably only added 5 hours of PIC time in the past year.

My question is, before I throw away the opportunity of med school, which a lot of people would kill for, how much of a chance do I have of obtaining a decent airline/freight job and successful career as a pilot? I am currently 25 years old, and have the medical condition as described in the old thread. You sound(ed) very confident that I can get the class I medical. Even if I get the class I medical, am I still going to have trouble getting jobs because of my monocular vision and its complementary waiver? Am I going to have to pass company-required physicals? My scanning and recognition abilities are not the best due to my eyesight.

How long is it going to take me to get the class I (given that I already have a class III)? If I find out that the FAA says there is no way I can get a class I, then it will make my decision to go to med school easier, but if I don't find out until this time next year, that could be disastrous. I'm assuming I will need a new 8500-7, so I should see an ophthalmologist and get a current 8500-7 first, then make an appointment with my AME for a class I?

As long as I get to fly I am going to be happy. A physician's income should allow it as a hobby (it's kind of tough on my pay as an engineer), and it's also a field I find interesting (some specialties anyway). I'm current on issues in medicine and have some idea of what it's going to be like in the future, but not so much with aviation. I want to go into this with my eyes wide open and not waste a lot of time and money on pilot ratings only to find out nobody will hire me because I'm an older guy with a waiver in an applicant pool of thousands of younger guys with perfect medicals.

And an unrelated question... Say I go to med school - what is the process of becoming an AME? Do I need to be a generalist to do this or can any type of physician do it (say for instance, a radiologist)? And also, about the field of aerospace medicine: this seems mostly limited to military folks; is there a path for civilians to get into this specialty? You are a full-time aerospace doc...what does this job involve? Are you in private practice or do contract your work out?

Thanks very much for your time and advice!
 
Go to medical school and get the ratings on the side.

You can take an residency in aerospace medicine (Wright State in Ohio and the University of Texas Galveston) or if you specialize in something else apply to become an AME. The chances of being appointed right out of residency are probably greater with the Aerospace Medicine residencies.

I am in private practice and molted into full-time aviation medicine as I have slowed down. There are jobs with airlines (not many any more), the FAA, and some consulting companies.

As far as a Class 1 - it takes about 20 minutes in our office.
 
My Flight Surgeon said:
Go to medical school and get the ratings on the side.

You can take an residency in aerospace medicine (Wright State in Ohio and the University of Texas Galveston) or if you specialize in something else apply to become an AME. The chances of being appointed right out of residency are probably greater with the Aerospace Medicine residencies.

I am in private practice and molted into full-time aviation medicine as I have slowed down. There are jobs with airlines (not many any more), the FAA, and some consulting companies.

As far as a Class 1 - it takes about 20 minutes in our office.
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So you are saying that pursuing medicine is going to be the smarter career move? I'll probably ask in the general forum too, but what I've heard from my flight instructor is that the airline industry isn't going to be hiring any time soon (he's still stuck doing mail runs and no regional will pick him up).

I'm probably not going to have much luck getting any additional ratings on the side given the time and cost commitments of med school (even my state school has a $50k/year cost of attendance), and I'm not really sure I need to given that I already have a PPL and wouldn't be flying professionally if I choose this career path. Although that leads me to another question - do AMEs ever get to fly or does this only happen in the military?

I was looking into the USAF HPSP, but am under the impression that I would be medically disqualified for flight and would not be able to gain the FC-II medical required for flight surgeons (amblyopia seems to be a disqualifying condition along with my failed depth perception test at MEPS). So I elected not to go the military route just yet given that I would be forced into a GMO slot instead of flight surgery due to my eyesight. Recently however, I have heard that Navy is the way to go for FS given that they actually let you fly. I dunno, I would still have the option of doing 3 year HPSP next year.

Right now, I guess I'll make an appt for the class I just so I'll know. I was searching the forums and it seems that I will need a SODA, correct? Is this something the AME will order?
 
The Navy requirements are as stringent if not more so than the Air Force as I remember.

AME's do not get to fly unless they have their own airplane. In the old days they did but since 911 it does not happen any more.

You will need to get a Form 8500-7 and have it completed by the ophthalmologist. That data is submitted to the FAA along with a request for a meidcal flight test. After the MFT, the FAA issues a SODA for monocular vision that is good for life.
 
My Flight Surgeon said:
You will need to get a Form 8500-7 and have it completed by the ophthalmologist. That data is submitted to the FAA along with a request for a meidcal flight test. After the MFT, the FAA issues a SODA for monocular vision that is good for life.
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Do you know if having a SODA will impact selection in the hiring process? I.e., do airlines not care if you have a SODA or not as long as you have a Class 1, or will you be passed over in favor of non-SODA applicants?
 
Atomic,

My advice would be - go to medical school. I've wanted to be an airline pilot since I was a child, I'm 28 now and "living the dream". Honestly, if I had a viable option to actually get out of this business, I would. Once you get into this industry, its very difficult to get out. I have a big fat monthly payment for all the flight training I went through to get here and its tough to still make that payment while doing something other than what that loan was intended for.

Being an airline pilot is awesome and its the coolest job in the world - for about the first year. Than after you're into it 3-4 years, you still can't make enough money to actually stock your house with food. Then suddenly you're furloughed and when they recall you, you now have to commute and pay for hotels/crashpad and more expenses. Now you really can't put quality food on your shelves. Sure the view is nice at the flight levels, but soon that gets boring too, and so you read the paper or play a game. Then you have converstations in the cockpit that never seem to change. How this airline did this, and how crew scheduling screwed us again, and how this 4 day trip with one day off and a 3 day trip won't let you go home to see your family because you commute.

Those fun and awesome things of the job start to give way to the brutality of the business. You could lose your job in as little as a few days. You have no retirement less what you save for yourself (goodluck saving anything those first 10 years). The only one's who appreciate what you do are the crews you fly with and the occassional passenger (and even they couldn't care less anymore). You spend 72+ hours away on "business", but you're paycheck reflects less than 12 hours of actual "pay". My brother has worked with Home Depot for 3 years, and his paychecks are more than mine, and he's doing the things he enjoys more often because he works a regular job.

Maybe if the pay was better. Maybe if the prospects of actually making it to a Major before I'm 40 were feasable. Maybe if there was some sort of retirement at the end. Maybe if these jobs didn't go to the lowest bidder. Maybe if Regionals weren't replacing jobs at the Majors, thus cutting off our advancement opportunity. Maybe this career would be better and worthwhile.

I'm stuck, and really haven't been able to come up with a good gameplan to get out. But you still have a choice. I don't know what med school is like and what that career field is like, but I know you'll probably make a lot more money, spend a lot more time doing the things you enjoy doing and you'll probably be happier. Because you can still go enjoy the finer side of aviation by renting or buying your own airplane and flying whenever you feel like taking flight.

Thats my advice. If you can make a career in the medical field - go for it. That doesn't mean you can't still be involved in aviation. Get your ratings, get your CFI's and enjoy all the free time you'll have by going flying.
 
Airdale said:
Atomic,

My advice would be - go to medical school. ...

Thats my advice. If you can make a career in the medical field - go for it. That doesn't mean you can't still be involved in aviation. Get your ratings, get your CFI's and enjoy all the free time you'll have by going flying.
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I've come to realize that you are right - no matter how much I love aviation, being a professional pilot is just not a viable career option at this point in my life. However I'm still not sure med school is for me no matter how much money they make. It's 8 years of grueling training and will put me about $100k in the hole, and the hours are long and irregular, the 'job' comes with heavy government regulation, and the workplace is full of hazards and difficult people to work with. So guess it can kind of be compared to aviation in some regards. All I know is that I can't take my cubical engineer job much longer no matter how cushy it is.

One other thing I just started considering is ATC. I am trying to determine what viable career options I have in aviation with my eye conditions.

Dr. Forred, with my vision problems (ambloyopia, max 20/40 corrected in right eye), is there anyway I could become a controller? They have a third class medical requirement, correct? But I am also told they have a separate screening process that requires 20/20 in each eye.
 
My Flight Surgeon said:
You need 20/20 in each eye, no exceptions.
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Corrected or uncorrected? Is there any way to improve vision in ambyopic adults? I remember years ago, the only treatment was eye patching young children, but I am wondering if science has advanced and there are now treatments.

Does the vision exam for controllers take place as part of the medical exam with an AME or is it conducted as part of the interview process? (I am confused because I already have a third class).

Does this mean there are no one-eyed controllers? E.g., if a controller loses most or all of his eyesight in one eye during his career, he is out of a job (i.e., there are no waivers)?

Thanks again for your time.
 
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