Look at that, all 4 of them had a diagnosis from the VA. More than anything, this should be pressing the FAA to adjust how they look at mental illness and flying. The FAA requires applicants with a diagnosis of epilepsy to be seizure-free for 10 years without medication before being considered for a medical certificate. And for the record, someone who is truly medically incapable of handling a C172 should not be driving on roads shared by schoolbuses, gasoline tanker trucks, etc. With holding important information. Logic dictates that if the medical requirement did not exist, the number of incapacitations would be somewhat higher. We only use the Case in point: A student pilot I was familiar with crashed his aircraft into the runway and killed himself after being arrested for drunk-driving the previous night. This exemption is exactly what I need to keep flying, and I am sure there are many others like me. Id had apnea for several years, napped daily once or twice. Before I was flying my previous HMO physician told me I was the perfect patient for the insurance company because I hadnt shown up for seven years. After 30 years without a problem, one would think the risk of incapacitation is no greater than the general pilot population flying on a normal class III medical. Does anyone really believe that this is also not true for pilots and in fact is probably much higher, given the hard working conditions. Someday you might actually have a problem you cannot hide. Funny thing is the murmur is gone but Ill never have my life back If you lie on your medical form Best of luck. It is important to point out, according to the AOPA, there have been no accidents related to pilots self-certifying and flying under the Sport program, and many of those pilots Im sure, were under the same misconception as me! When that syndrome is cured, much of what is wrong at FAA will be cured. He as a jet driver and as the sole pilot that might have been a problem during the flight he was scheduled for the next day. Or have a child die and see a counselor of any sort. Much is right there too, but that practice detracts from an otherwise good performance. Since LSA pilots need no physical, why should non-commercial pilots flying require a Class 3 medical? Im also struggling with depression. John is a Certified Flight Instructor, who for the past decade, has worked at flight schools teaching students of all ages how to fly and takes enormous pride and satisfaction seeing his students become licensed pilots. in detail and conduct a physical exam. But sharing them with the FAA is detrimental to your health. I can get it back, but I have to go through a fairly extensive bureaucratic morass to recover it, then jump through extra hoops over the years to keep it. I will follow that up with a word of warning. The truly dangerous people are those that make impulsive decisions while in a dire mental health state brought on by outside factors. Think about what the FAA is likely to be interested in: Onset of chronic disease, like high blood pressure or type II diabetes. I had to get TWO EKGs to satisfy FAA medical! Medical certificates are designated as first-class, second-class, or third-class. A pilot might reason, for example, that the antidepressant he's taken for months hasn't caused any side effects and actually makes him more mentally fit to fly, a safer pilot. Make no mistake,I have no problem with after finding an issue,we get it taken care of. Make the FAA do a special issue for every single pilot in the country. FAA needs to justify their man hours.with scapegoats. If they can just rid the world of these bothersom pilots then their job will be much easier. If you dont take a medication NOW, it does not need to be reported. I have to do the same stuff to go ice diving. Unfortunatley I have seen too many accident reports where the pilot was on prescription medications (found during the toxicological examination)many of them disqulifying, and none of them were reported on the medical application. After you complete your MedXPress application, you will need to schedule an FAA flight physical with an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME). Both asked for, and received, removal of their Special Issuance. You just never know, and even a thorough and honest medical will never catch anything. Now that I have no further problems I have to take an Awake and Alert test annually. What Are the Chances of Getting Caught Lying on an FAA Medical? You are assumed to be lying. This is why sometimes it becomes necessary to avoid telling the attending physician more than is necessary least the physician spin the whole condition in different light by making a mountain out of a mole hill, thereby destroying the flying career of the pilot for something that even the physician himself or herself is not sure about. Just do want everyone does to get into the military hide the truth. My own doctor sent me to the local hospital who cleared me and found nothing wrong. I have been a private pilot since 10/05/2013 I know that the medical form is a self certifying process that can have good or bad risks but you never know what the FAA has access to since their a government organization/department. Special Issuance medical exams can cost more. In other words, bigger name on the other line. Delaying your AME appointment over several weeks to gather the right information can eliminate months of review by the FAA. The FAA processes close to 400,000 flight physicals every year. The FAA has panels of civilian medical experts for each speciality who meet regularly to review the FAA medical regulations and recommend changes based on new research. I cheeted on a eye test flowen with out a incedent. How do I get my FAA medical records? Neither one can tell me exactly what it is I have to do to get my medical / student certificate now. Me- private pilot ASEL, Airplane Instrument, flying since 1986. Direct Primary Care Physician for Pilots? He passed his 3rd class every time. We have a very good AME in our area. I'm not offering any advice on what to do. If the FAA ever decides to search to see if he is taking any prescription medications (which they dont do often, but they have the ability to do), they will most likely pull his medical permanently for falsification. John has been quoted or mentioned in major publications, including Chron, Flying Mag, and National Review. Returning home, the Civil Aviation Medical Board cleared me for flying. It is so easy for those not flying professionally to prescribe stricter rules for those that do. It can also ensure you keep flying for years to come. Now then, back to your question do pilots lie about medical conditions to their AME naaaaaaah! The bottom line is,if you cant be truthfull to yourself,you cant be truthfull at all. Speaking as a pilot, I think that there should be a way to maintain certification for those of us flying recreationally without having to see an AME every 2 years. But the standards are not different. I am unconscious every night. However you have never been treated or taken medication so probably if you disclose it the FAA would require some sort of doctors evaluation which says you are OK and that will be the end of it. Special Issuance hoop jumping is expensive. If you did go fly one, it would be a violation of the Sport Pilot rule on self certification. The FAA Medical requirements need revision and made more rational instead of simply being a procedural nightmare for pilots. It revealed an abnormality. I then had to take an echo, which revealed I was even healthier than I thought! Of course people lie on the application, they want the medical so they can keep flying. If after that the FAA denied your application, you can seek reconsideration of that denial by making a few substantive arguments. In fact, as I write this, I see over on the corner of my screen a tweet entitled Older pilots are safe pilots. Emmons wait until you have an episode of situational hypertension or have to see a marriage counselor. What Are the Chances of Getting Caught Lying on an FAA Medical? I just wonder why? Any help would be greatly appreciated thank you. So the Medical certification system is statistically, virtually, perfector..redundant AS LONG AS you are in a multi-crew aircraft. Its mode of travel, the air, makes it a lot more divertable than stuck to a road, and should make it safer, Especially as opposed to the majority of motor home drivers, that are in their later stages of life, howling down the freeway at 70 miles per hour in bumper to bumper traffic. Remove the AME from the loop, and there is no one but the pilot to judge whether the above situation is safe. '[T]here is probably some justification for that,' he acknowledged in a 1998 interview, noting that the FAA is 'extremely conservative' when it comes to medical matters. Its a losing game. I always had to do a stress test, but starting 2 years ago, that has been expanded to require radionuclide scintigraphy every other year. Sorry for apparently differing from the crowd on this, but I think people are nuts if they are lying. We know that the incidence of major depression in the general population is 10%. This is left bundle branch block which is a stop as far as the CAA is concerned. Question:Do you think most pilots fib on applications for medical certificates? 3. Fly over open country and probably be able to put the plane down in a field if there were trouble but the FAA has a BIG resounding NO for that. At medical renewal you give a different date for same previously reported event. Some pilots are terrified of the FAA's power to revoke their flying privileges and, accordingly, bend or ignore the rules. Does anyone know the statistics of how often a dead pilot at a crash is found to have prescribed medications for a condition that has not been reported on the 8500-8? Make no mistake: Form 8500-8 is a legal instrument, unlike many other documents. Its funny that this question even comes up. Compared to all causes of death, these are infinitesimal numbers. There are about 450-500 deaths per year in ALL of general aviation. I dont think its ever been a question about whether pilots lie. While a diabetic can develop hypoglycemic coma, a cardiac patient faint from an arrhythmia, or a patient become mentally impaired from an excessive dose of a medication, the real world evidence does not support that such incidences are common enough to recommend banning driving by those with such medical conditions. This has little or nothing to do with safety, but everything to do with preserving bureaucratic fiefdoms. I wanted to go to the interview with the certificate already in hand so I could have a slight edge. While not endorsing that, it is understandable at the emotional level. I hesitated to contact the FAA as I didnt want to deprive this man of his dream to be a pilot but the risk of harm to himself and to others was greater than His Dream so I sent a detailed letter. The Great Debate: do pilots lie on medicals? In addition to providing your name, address, recent doctor appointments and hospitalizations, and details about your medical history, you will also need to acknowledge several warnings. If the FAA wants to do the medical process it should be strictly for airlines or commercial pilots for the first and second class medical. Im depressed, so their answer is to tell me I cant do anything to fix my problem whilst simultaneously denying me something that significantly helps with my depression: Flying? That may boost your chances of passing the exam or minimizing delays on the FAA's end. So, easing up on the medical requirements would be based on real world situations. The whole thing is about safety but the FAA has never proven the need for the medicals, especially the third class, it was just randomly instituted one day a long time ago. That process will have to be repeated every year. I know a guy from the US (cant tell his name) that told me that he has lied at least one time, he was overweight and had high blood pressure, he was medicated but he never told that in his annual. What is 1st 2nd and 3rd class FAA medical? You said they can search, where do they find that information? They are issued by states. Im no danger to anyone because I dont particularly like myself. Why? So, the medical certification process has greatly reduced my joy. But, sooner or later, most pilots will develop a medical condition that they cannot hide. The FAA is hopelessly stuck in the stone age, especially in the Aeromedical division. The real question is; Do you trust you AME? Policy I was so desperate to lower the volume that I installed a volume control in my own headset so I would not be blasted out of my seat. I was diagnosed with PTSD from my service in the infantry Vietnam in 1968/1969 and have received counseling for it. Ill continue to go by the book until such time as the rules change, or I wish to no longer fly. Brian, what about a medication that was rx when you were eight and havent taken for 20yrs? Its only a matter of time. If successful with testing, you can then make further arguments that you do not have an aeromedically significant medical condition. Politicians create government agencies empowered to rule by edict. Its not a profession which that college students wake up and decide they want to fly a plane. The FAA medical certification process has at times made me feel that I was in actual hell. A good AME will tell you how to jump through the hoops so that when you go for your FAA medical certificate, you have all the data needed for the FAA. How is that fair? See Also: Do Flight Schools Drug Test Students? 99.999999% of pilots can and should self-certify for 3rd class flying. Sign up for our free email newsletter, packed with tips, tricks and news for pilots. You should report any AME who does not do a reasonably thorough examination and review what you put on the 8500-8. Address: PO Box 11 West Liberty, KY 41472, Email: Anthony@ThePilotLawyer.com | Christopher@ThePilotLawyer.com, Office Hours: Mon - Thu, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Eastern Time Zone)Fri, 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Eastern Time Zone)Messages left for attorneys after these business hours will be addressed the following business day, during business hours, The Ison Law Firm offers FAA defense nationwide from our offices in Florida and Kentucky, Lakeland Web Design by BrightSky Web Design, Messages left for attorneys after these business hours will be addressed the following business day, during business hours, https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/avs/offices/aam/ame/guide/dec_cons/disease_prot/adhd/, Assessment for Sleep Apnea During Your FAA Medical, FAA Medical Certificate and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia. I have to weigh in on this issue. The 3rd class medical crosses the line where freedom is unreasonably denied in the pursuit of absolute safety. The med examination wasnt any different from the third class but the vision requirements are different. The word EVER in the forms will toss you through a buttload of psychological tests you will be sorry you were ever honest. I am now 75 years old, and the FAA continues to demand increasily more stringent testing to get the isssuance. You can be a Sport Pilot if you have never had your FAA medical denied. What was yours for if you dont mind me asking. The most recent was a year and a half ago. That cost me about six months of flying. If youre over 40 and your first-class medical is not renewed within six calendar months, itll revert to the privileges of a second-class medical for an additional six months. His career was essentially over with that arrest and he killed himself because of it. Every child at some point decides to spin around and around until they are dizzy and fall down. If they say that you have a condition that requires you to be grounded, then fill out an 8500-8 medical form. I can meet Class 1 if I fib. Commercial pilots, or military pilots or leisure pilots may have lied during their lifetimes, but it is unfair to only single out the pilots. The 8500-8 of necessity must be brief and it is very difficult to get authorization to change it. Until the rules change, abide by them, and make sure you self monitor. If it makes you feel any better, the doctors office transposed two numbers in the date of the exam. The only variable is about what. Dr. House. Thus, agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Federal Bureau of Identification (FBI), for example, will most likely still be able to see your expunged records. Irs Data Book, 2020. chances of getting caught lying on faa medical one of the medications used treat! R: Sleep Apnea. And, actually, the FAA is making Special Issuance less of a problem for certain diseases. NONE . My 10k already spent, to me was wasted. The FAA medical certification process starts when you fill out an electronic application in MedXPress. Simple you dont need to know and if you are scared to apply for you medical because your feared in getting caught. In fact he asked me where did I see that I could make that attachment. I am working on my private pilot license and I was honest and admitted to an episode of seasonal depression treated with medication (which I no longer require or take). Students and young pilots just want to fly. We display medical information based on FAAs Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI) medical records. If you qualify for an FAA medical certificate, they will issue it to you at the end of your appointment, document your exam findings, and transmit your application to the FAA. He refused to take the physical his business required because his family had a history of heart trouble, he was a bit overweight, etc. Thank you for the post. The FAAs denial letter may look daunting, but time and time again, airmen with a history of ADHD are being issued medical certification following the appropriate presentation of the airmens fitness for flight. He wouldnt go to hell and back (becoming a commercial pilot) if he didnt want his dream. The other crewmembers will consult the seniority list to see how they fare after my death. Such a persons private physician(s) might not think so, but those physician(s) have no say in the matter. Ive seen pilots successfully conquer exams and die days later (in flight).