How many wear glasses or contact lenses?

e300d · Post by **e300d** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:19 pm

Hello,

I was wondering how many of you guys/gals have to wear glasses or contacts to have a 20/20 vision. Myself I wear a contact lens in my right eye.

Do the operators look different at you if you wear glasses or need contacts or do they just need to see that you have a valid medical?

Also how is it in bigger operations (ie Skyservice), would a company hire a pilot with perfect vision as opposed to a pilot who wears glasses?

Thanks

North Shore · Post by **North Shore** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:26 pm

I've never had a problem with wearing glasses or Contacts - and I need them full-time. No-one has ever asked me about them. I have a Cat 1 medical, and that's good enough. Some airlines, I believe, have more strict requirements than TC - perhaps someone else can speak to that.

PPP · Post by **PPP** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:36 pm

well for me I don't need my glasses for everyday use, just flying. If there is people hireing 20/20 then there in for a surprise.
cheers

w squared · Post by **w squared** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:57 pm

I wear them all the time - but my vision is about 20/15 corrected.

In order to get a Cat 1, if you wear contacts, TC may need you to bring a form to your optometrist. Keep in mind that you will need to have a pair of glasses available to you in the cockpit when you're wearing your contacts. If you wear hard contacts, you will need two pairs of glasses - one to correct for the intial blur, and then one to wear after your eyes normalize.

I don't have any hard facts, but I've heard rumours that some employers (in the US I believe) are not accepting people that have had laser surgery to correct their vision. I think that this is because some of the possible side effects will decrease your visual quality (halo effect, decreased night vision, etc) without affecting your ability to read an eye chart. That's the only input that I can offer on airline's vision requirements.

Giver eh! · Post by **Giver eh!** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 6:59 pm

I wear glasses 24/7.

BTD · Post by **BTD** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 7:13 pm

I wear contacts whenever I am awake and have not had a problem with any CAT I medicals so far. I just said that I am wearing contacts and all I had to do was read the 20/20 line and I was good to go.

Right Seat Captain · Post by **Right Seat Captain** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 8:57 pm

I wear contacts to correct to 20/15. It stopped me from getting into the military, which I resented for some time, but starting to think it's better this way.

As far as civil aviation goes, because I rarely wear glasses, people are always surprised to see me wearing glasses, they think I must have perfect vision. All that to say I have a CAT 1 medical that says glasses or contacts must be worn, and thats all the operation I work for requires.

As a note though, apparently it is improtnat that it says contacts can be worn on your medical if you're going to use them. I was not in the known for a few years, when all of a sudden I got a new medical in the mail and it sais glasses or contacts must be worn, where it used to only say glasses. I asked someone eventually at Transport, and said it is supposed to be there if you're going to wear them. So I flew with the contacts wrongly for a while apparently. How it suddenly appeared in my file is a mystery.

krispykreme · Post by **krispykreme** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 10:45 pm

I think there are a lot of people that wear glasses/ contacts. I've heard that 60% of young adults these days need corrective eyewear.

I've worn glasses all my life, and to me its no big deal. But correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there is a "uncorrrected" limit for your medical as well, I think its 20/200 or something like this. I for one, would not even consider laser beams in my eyes! I may have to wear my glasses, but at least I can see at night! I have friends that have had lasik, and they cant, and wont drive at night due to haloing.

xduster · Post by **xduster** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:07 pm

RSC

I had the same thing happened to me. I was flying for a while with the "glasses must be worn" on my licence. It wasn't untill i did my ifr that the examiner asked if i was wearing contacts as i didn't have my glasses on. My medical examiner didn't even notice...not even when i went in with my contacts for my medical. Does anyone out there know if laser eye surgery is accepted by TC? I think the last i heard was that if you had it done, you needed one year off to see if the surgery worked properly. Anyone with any info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

snoopy · Post by **snoopy** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 12:46 am

sebastian,
You will find a large number of pilots out there that wear contacts and/or glasses and I have never heard of an employer objecting to their use. The only party with restrictions is the Canadian Military, and personally I think the reg is highly objectionable.
Even if you have terrible vision and you don't meet the standards for uncorrected vision as it applies to the Cat 1 medical, you can apply to the medical review board for consideration. Recently I referred someone to this route and he was successful in obtaining the Cat 1 which had been previously denied him.
There is usually a stipulation on your medical (as mentioned above) as to whether glasses and/or contacts must be worn.
One piece of advice from personal experience - if you wear contact lenses and work in the remote north, have a spare pair in your flight bag along with a travel size of solution as you never know when you might lose a lens or be stranded overnight.
Cheers,
Snoopy

Right Seat Captain · Post by **Right Seat Captain** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 4:37 am

krispykreme wrote: But correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there is a "uncorrrected" limit for your medical as well, I think its 20/200 or something like this.

I believe its 20/30.

Right Seat Captain · Post by **Right Seat Captain** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 4:38 am

krispykreme wrote: But correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there is a "uncorrrected" limit for your medical as well, I think its 20/200 or something like this.

I believe its 20/30.

20/200 is the supposed limit of how bad your eyesight can be, even if it gets corrected to 20/20. But, I've spoken to a few CAMEs, and they say that rule has been essentially thrown out. As long as after correction, you can at least see 20/30, then you're good.

e300d · Post by **e300d** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 5:26 am

Thanks to all for the good replies.

I am always looking around for pilot when at work (yyz) and I dont see too many younger pilots wearing glasses. I guess they wear contacts or some are fortunate enough to have good vision.

BTD · Post by **BTD** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 5:55 am

RSC,

I think thats what Krispy meant. It is 20/30 is all that is required, corrected or uncorrected. I could be wrong but i thought the minimum was 20/300, think I read that somewhere or -6.0 diopters correction.

I could be wrong though.

Aeros · Post by **Aeros** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:54 am

The uncorrected vision requirement is 20/200. As Snoopy mentioned, if you fail to meet this requirement you can apply to the review board. In more and more cases they are rulining in favor of the applicant and are not overly concerened about uncorrected vision.

The corrected vision must be at least 20/30. The regs still spell out limits for the amount of correction that can be used (+/- 3.0 diopters for a Cat 1 and +/- 5.0 diopters for Cats 2 and 3). That being said, that rule has been in existence for a long time and technologoy has improved since its inception. Canada has approached ICAO and has convinced them that the correction restrictions are no longer necessary. The concern was distortion that may result when large correction is used. The lens making technology is sufficiently advanced now that this distortion is no longer a concern. Canada's position (and the one that they now enforce) does not worry about the amount of correction that is required. Bottom line, if your uncorrected vision is at least 20/200 and your vision corrects to at least 20/30 then you will be issued a medical certificate. If you fail to meet the 20/200 restriction appeal it and you will likely win. My guess is that the 20/200 limitation is also a carry over from the concerns that large corretion may lead to visual distortion.

e300d · Post by **e300d** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:46 am

Hi,

Last February (2004), I went to get my eyes checked since it was time to get my medical and I wanted to make sure my eyes were alright. Since I never looked through one eye before, I had no idea that my right eye was weak. Well as it turns out my right eye is -2 which translates to about 20/200 the doctor said. I still went ahead with my goal of becoming a pilot, however now I am questioning myself.

I just got back from the optometrist. My left eye is still 20/20 uncorrected, however my right eye has not changed. The right eye is -2 or 20/200 as my doc says. I wear 1 contact lense (in the right eye) and that brings my vision to 20/20.

What do you guys think? Should I be worried about my right eye? And the possibility of being turned down by an employer due to my right eye in the future?

w squared · Post by **w squared** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 9:06 am

20/200 uncorrected is not all that bad, sebastian. People's eyes change over time...in many cases, your eyes will change over a period of time, and then stabilize for a second period. My eyes changed over a period of three years in my late teens, and have been stable for 10 years since.

As long as you're not dealing with astigmatism or any other abnormalities, it's unlikely that being somewhat nearsighted (-2.0 is not a very strong prescription) will have any negative effect on your flying. Especially if the other eye is 20/20 uncorrected.

sherlock · Post by **sherlock** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 10:18 am

If you get your eyes lasered your medical is suspended for 6 mos. now, but a person I know had it done and appealed and was flying again in just over three mos.
So far as glasses go you must have two pair with you in the cockpit or readily accessable to you. (this is in case one pair breaks while in flight)
So far as correction goes you have to be correctable to at least 20/30 (they prefer 20/20 or better).
My CAME says that the uncorrected issue is not germain because you would be wearing your glasses/contacts all the time anyway, but he (and a few other CAMEs have issues with contacts because of what they dso to your eye and the potential for damage when flying at higher altitudes because of the partial pressure differences.

Yoyoma · Post by **Yoyoma** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 10:30 am

Out of curiosity, how many of you that wear contacts experience the late afternoon, evening dryness...

I'd sometimes be driving and the sun would be head on causing my eyes to itch. I usually start rubbing and before I know it, the contact is all gooey, messed up and ready to pop out!

Sounds like a horror movie

ZLIN 142C · Post by **ZLIN 142C** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 11:10 am

I wear glasses 24/7. I have not yet heard anyone say that it might be a problem in terms of getting a job. I would say that about one-fifth of the pilots who fly for the company I am most familiar with (and hope to fly for) do wear glasses in the cockpit. A lot of the rest wear contacts, no doubt. I don't think that having poor vision carries the same stigma that it did a decade or two ago. As long as it's corrected, it shouldn't interfere with your flying at all. But I share some of the concerns voiced here about laser surgery, and for those reasons I've stopped considering it.

w squared · Post by **w squared** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 12:22 pm

Yoyo: If you're having comfort issues with your contacts, you might want to consider the long-wear contacts. I started using them three months ago.

They're about 5 times more breathable than regular contacts, and I've found them to be very comfortable. Except for 10 or 15 minutes in the morning, I often forget that I have them in...except for the fact that I can see properly.

They're a few dollars more than monthly or daily disposables, but it's worth it for two reasons. First, I don't have to spend any time putting them or letting my adjust. Second, even if I'm up for long periods of time they stay far more comfortable - no dryness.

You may need to use rewetting drops every now and then, but what you spend on drops, you'll save on solution. your optometrist should be able to tell you if you're a good candidate.

I think it's an especially good idea for those folks that work long shifts, spend time on call, or have to move quickly after getting paged. I know that it simplifies my life substantially.

Yoyoma · Post by **Yoyoma** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 12:36 pm

w squared, thanks for the info.

A couple of years ago, when I was still using 3 months contacts, I spoke to an optometrist re: long-wear contacts and this is what he told me:

"Would you wear your underwear day after day without changing or washing them?"

I hesitated, and then realized he wanted me to say no, so I said: "No" He then proceeded to sell me the 3 or 6 month kind, whichever it is...I guess he didn’t get commissions for the Long-wear!

C-FOXY · Post by **C-FOXY** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 12:47 pm

I wear Focus Night & Day soft disposable contacts. They are "long wear" contacts. You are supposed to be able to wear them for 30 consecutive days and nights and then put in a new pair. I haven't tried that, but rather in and out everyday. No dry eyes at the end of the day....they are awesome!! Pricey though...about $35 / pair.

e300d · Post by **e300d** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 6:54 pm

Well, I guess my eyesight shouldnt be a major concern. I thought about a lasik in the future however I think the risk is too high.

I also got accepted to a flight college today, we'll I guess I shouldnt be worring too much....at least right now.

desksgo · Post by **desksgo** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:00 pm

C-FOXY wrote:I wear Focus Night & Day soft disposable contacts. They are "long wear" contacts. You are supposed to be able to wear them for 30 consecutive days and nights and then put in a new pair. I haven't tried that, but rather in and out everyday. No dry eyes at the end of the day....they are awesome!! Pricey though...about $35 / pair.

Yoyo, try these, I swear by them. I haven't taken my contacts out to sleep for years. I just toss them every 40 days and have no problems whatsoever. Never dry either.