Please help... Color vision in Nashville, TN...

lifesbeachy

Well-Known Member
Hello everyone, I am really hoping I can get some help here. I am having a lot of issues with color vision, and need help finding a solution.

I now have the restriction for no night flying on my medical, and I need help getting this removed. I have called Vanderbilt and almost every eye doctor I can find to see what tests they have, and so far all of them only have the ishahara plates, which I cannot pass.

Five years ago, I went and got my first class medical with no restrictions, I believe we used the keystone test, in any case I was able to see the numbers in the dots on this test. After my medical expired I went again for a new medical in Florida and failed the color vision portion. Since then I have gone back to my first AME and obtained a first class medical, no restrictions (to be fair, I do not think he gave me another color vision test this time). A few weeks later I received a letter from the FAA with a new medical, restriction placed back on the medical because I had failed the test in Florida.

So, I bought the farnsworth flashlight to practice, and sometimes I pass, sometimes I fail. I have gone to the local airport and had the tower shine the lights at me with my dad, a former FAA inspector from 2600' and I was able to see them. I went again a week later with another one of his friends from the FAA and did it from 1000' then 1500', missing only one of the colors (the tower kept alternating the lights in 1 second intervals, giving me the "return to starting point" signal lol).

I can, CLEAR AS DAY, see the nav lights on aircraft, I can see the green and white on the beacon, and I can see the lights at the airport. I know that I am not a threat to safety, and I really want to resolve this issue.

I need help finding someone that can administer an alternate test nearby, like I said, I have had a lot of difficulty with locating someone. Can I go to another AME with the farnsworth, or try and find one with the keystone test? Does anyone know what my options are in the Nashville area?

So, if all of that fails, I know I can take the OCVT/MFT, but I am super nervous about failing as it is forever. Also, because of finances, I have yet to obtain my private, how do I go about taking the MFT without my PPL? I would hate to spend a lot of money right now on my private only to fail, because if I cannot do this for a career that money could be better spend right now. I am extremely passionate about aviation, and I hate feeling this lost about what to do, please help!

Thanks, and sorry for the long post haha
 
I use Dr Whitfield in Brentwood. You might could call for a reference and or just see what he has to say
 
Give Dr. Charlie R. Smith a try. He's close to BNA. Pilots from all over come in to use him...great guy. I think he used to be chief pilot for AA, and formerly practiced in the Ophthalmology field so he can probably help you out. He's the only one I use now.

615-889-5594
 
Thanks for the replies everyone. Well I went and took several tests at the Southern College of Optometry in Memphis and I was able to pass one (the keystone). However, I still feel a little unsettled because I struggled with this test and even the Dr asked me "SO, what is your backup plan?" The Dr said that I will not make a career out of this, and went on to say that when I go on to another Dr years down the road that eventually this is going to bite me. I took almost all of the other alternative test with the Dr and failed all of them pretty bad, he did not have the farnsworth but I was nervous about taking that one anyway. So I feel like this will eventually mean I need to do a ride with the FAA, but I'm very nervous about that idea because if I fail that is going to ruin something I have loved for my entire life. I'd love to hear some other peoples wisdom, advice, or any tips and ideas you may have.

Thanks so much guys!
 
The Dr said that I will not make a career out of this, and went on to say that when I go on to another Dr years down the road that eventually this is going to bite me. I took almost all of the other alternative test with the Dr and failed all of them pretty bad, he did not have the farnsworth but I was nervous about taking that one anyway. So I feel like this will eventually mean I need to do a ride with the FAA, but I'm very nervous about that idea because if I fail that is going to ruin something I have loved for my entire life. I'd love to hear some other peoples wisdom, advice, or any tips and ideas you may have.

The doctor is right. I think you really need to get the OCVT/MFT done. If you do make a career out of this, you don't want to be in the position of having to skate through a test every 6 or 12 months that you are marginal on. Get plenty of light gun practice at an airport. Study sectional charts and make sure you can identify all the colors. Once you have that letter of evidence, you are going to sleep a lot better. You want to take care of this before you spend thousands of dollars in training and years of your life.
 
@matt152 thanks for your reply. I completely agree with you. Though the OCVT/MFT worries me beyond belief. It isn't so much the light gun signals or the sectional chart that worries me, it is the MFT that worries me. It seems highly subjective. What exactly will they ask me the colors of? I personally feel that the emphasis needs to be placed on "Can he safely perform his duties and fly safely at night?" not "Can he name these colors?" I do not feel that I have any trouble with naming the colors at the airport, at night I can see that colors of nav lights. So I personally do not feel that I am unsafe, but that will not be so much in my hands as it will be in a strangers hands that will decide what he feels. What if the examiner has had a bad day? haha I know thats taking it a bit far, I am just worried about any trickery or deceiving questions. Will he TRY to make me fail, or will he be on my side? A lot of eggs are in this basket and I really would hate to lose it!
 
@matt152 What exactly will they ask me the colors of? I personally feel that the emphasis needs to be placed on "Can he safely perform his duties and fly safely at night?" not "Can he name these colors?" I do not feel that I have any trouble with naming the colors at the airport, at night I can see that colors of nav lights

You need to be able to idenitfy the colors by name. He is not trying to make you fail, but he should be thorough in the evaluation.

This is from the FAA guidance on conducting a MFT:

6) Observe the applicant with a color vision defect.
a) An applicant for a first‑ or second‑ class airman medical certificate who has defective color vision, must demonstrate the following:

1. The ability to pass an OCVT which includes:
· A SLT (see paragraph 5‑1527); and
· The ability to read and correctly interpret in a timely manner aeronautical charts, including print in various sizes, colors, and typefaces; conventional markings in several colors; and terrain colors. Aeronautical chart reading may be performed under any light condition where the chart will normally be read. The ASI or AST must provide the aeronautical chart.
2. The ability to pass a color vision MFT as described below:
· 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.
· Must recognize terrain and obstructions in a timely manner; have the applicant 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. Further, ask the applicant to identify obstructions such as ditches, fences, terraces, low spots, rocks, stumps, and, in particular, any gray, tan, or brown objects in green fields.

3. Must visually identify in a timely manner the location, color and significance of aeronautical lights. To minimize the effect of an applicant memorizing the color of a light associated with a particular light system, the ASI should make every effort to not use the light system name during the flight, but rather to ask the applicant to identify a light color and the significance of as many of the following lights as possible:
· Colored lights of other aircraft in the vicinity.
· Runway approach lights, both the Approach Light System (ALS) and Visual Glideslope Indicators.
· Runway edge light system.
· Runway End Identifier Lights.
· In‑runway lighting (runway centerline (CL) lights, touchdown zone (TDZ) lights, taxiway lead‑off lights, land and hold short lights.
· Airport boundary lights.
· Taxiway lights (edge lights, CL lights, clearance bar lights, runway guard lights, and stop bar lights.
· Red warning lights on television towers, high buildings, stacks, etc.
· Airport beacon lights.
 
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