Flying with glasses.

09-15-2004, 05:38 PM

Can you fly ANY aircraft in the air force with glasses? I never thought so.

12-17-2004, 11:32 PM

sorry, nope.

**Brad** · 12-18-2004, 09:45 AM

Jayhawk doesn't know what he's talking about. There are lots of pilots who wear glasses or contacts. It really depends on what your specific vision problem is.

01-06-2005, 11:44 PM

I'm a Student WSO and I wear my glasses all the time when I fly. It's all about being corrected to 20/20.

StoleIt · 02-04-2005, 12:09 AM

If you can get a medical waiver than you can fly with glasses. Simple as that. "Correctable to 20/20".

05-05-2005, 09:16 AM

Tis true, if it can be corrected to 20/20, you can fly.

05-05-2005, 09:17 AM

I was told though that you probably will get co-pilot type job. I do not know if this is completely true though.

**Brad** · 05-05-2005, 09:24 AM

^It's not - if it's correctable you can be Pilot in Command as long as you can pass a Class 1 flight physical. If you're not physically qualified to be a pilot, you're not physically qualified to be a nav either. In fact, some of the enlisted aircrew positions have the same requirements as those for pilots.

meems1128 · 05-19-2005, 10:46 AM

You're right. It's all about being correctable to 20/20. I'm going to the AF Academy and am technically only nav qualified. But, when I graduate, I can be re-evaluated on my vision correctness. Most likely, however, I will opt for corrective surgery (like PRK, not LASIK). If the government's paying for it, why not?!

I have another question though, can enlisted people be pilots? If so, I haven't met any!

Rusty24 · 05-19-2005, 11:40 PM

Nope no enlisted pilots in the AF. I can say that I know at least 10 pilots that wear glasses ...... not nav's or backseaters .... PILOTS!

Godholio · 12-05-2005, 02:01 PM

It's all about the Class 1 flight physical. Basically, if you're corrected to 20/20, and your refractive error is below a certain level (I want to say + or - 1.50) you're ok. There's a little more to it than that of course, but just being correctable isnt enough.

My refractive error is -6.50 in both eyes, correctable to 20/15. I wouldn't get a waiver for a pilot slot, or nav (3.50 IIRC). I got the ABM waiver though, so its all good (5.50 is the limit).

d'artangan · 10-19-2006, 11:57 AM

Okay, we're talking about two different things. In order to qualify for Undergraduate Pilot Trainging (UPT) you need 20/20 vision. After you are trained, you have to have vision that is correctable to 20/20. I tried and could not qualify for UPT. Been there done that.

**Brad** · 10-19-2006, 04:14 PM

Don, I think I've been through the qual process a little more recently. That 20/20 requirement to qualify is no longer the case. It's 20/70 or something like that correctable to 20/20. It's still true, like you say, though, that the requirements change a little once you're in as a pilot.

d'artangan · 10-26-2006, 01:16 PM

Brad - when did you go through the qual process. I have a class I physical with a requirement to wear glasses to get a civilian license. This allowed me to attend test pilot school as a contractor (flight test engineer, not pilot) in 1995. I recently re-qualled because of job requirements (Class I's expire), and the UPT requirements are 20/40 correctable to 20/20 (at least that's what the Flight Surgeon at Robins told me).