Eye surgery and the medical certification process
Aviation is an exercise in control. Pilots control their aircraft, their actions, and their passengers. Medical certification is one process that is almost completely out of the pilot's hands. Perhaps the one major exception is vision.
The FAA's visual-acuity standards are not particularly stringent — 20/40 or better corrected or uncorrected is required for a third class medical. So what can you do if you're unable to meet the standard? Or what if you just don't feel like wearing those glasses or contacts any longer? For most, the decision is a photorefractive eye surgery. Luckily, these are allowed by the FAA, now even for near- and distant-vision deficiencies.
The FAA allows almost all of the procedures approved by the Food and Drug Administration. This currently includes photorefractive keratectomy, LASIK (laser assisted in-situ kerato-mileusis), and photorefractive keratoplasty (excimer laser).
Assuming you undergo a standard procedure to correct for either near or distant vision, you can fly once your ophthalmologist releases you to resume normal activities and when your visual acuity meets the FAA standard for the class of medical certificate you currently hold. After the surgery, the FAA will require a brief status report from your ophthalmologist indicating complete healing without adverse side effects and visual acuity that meets or exceeds the standard for your medical certificate.
The FAA now accepts refractive surgery that corrects one eye for distant vision and the other for near, although the recertification process is a bit more complicated. To begin with, you must undergo a six-month stabilization period during which you must wear glasses or contact lenses that allow you to meet the FAA's vision standard for the class of medical certificate you currently hold.
After the stabilization period, the FAA will issue a medical certificate with a corrective-lens restriction, which requires you to continue wearing corrective lenses while flying. Pilots have the option at this point to either comply with the restriction or request a medical flight test with an inspector from the local flight standards district office. Assuming you successfully complete the test, the inspector will issue a Statement of Demonstrated Ability that will remove the corrective-lens requirement from your medical.
Read AOPA's guidance on photorefractive procedures online or contact AOPA's Medical Certification department. As a part of the Pilot Information Center, the experts help pilots with detailed and complicated medical cases on a daily basis. You can reach them during normal business hours from Monday through Friday at 800/USA-AOPA (872-2672).
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