AOPA charters new Board of Aviation Medical Advisors
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association has chartered a new Board of Aviation Medical Advisors that includes some of the most distinguished names in aviation medicine.
The reconstituted board held its first meeting at AOPA Expo 2000 in Long Beach, California, which included a special session with Federal Air Surgeon Dr. Jon L. Jordan.
"Medical issues are a growing concern for AOPA members, and the issues are getting increasingly more complex," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "The AOPA Board of Aviation Medical Advisors will give AOPA even greater expertise and make our advocacy efforts that much stronger.
"We asked the aviation medical community to recommend the best of the best, and we got them."
Besides providing expert advice, medical board members will also assist AOPA on precedent-setting aviation medicine issues.
The new AOPA Board of Aviation Medical Advisors includes experts in aviation medicine, psychiatry, surgery, and orthopedics. The board also includes two former managers of the FAA's medical certification division.
"Dr. Jordan, the current federal air surgeon, has told us he wants to consult frequently with the AOPA Board of Aviation Medical Advisors," said Boyer.
Members of the board will also participate in medical panels at every AOPA Expo and at the AOPA Fly-In, interacting directly with AOPA members.
The members of the new AOPA Board of Aviation Medical Advisors include:
- Dr. Owen Brodie, psychiatrist, past president of the Flying Physicians Association, lecturer on psychological aspects of flying.
- Dr. H.R. Conwell, chief flight surgeon for Continental Airlines, former naval aviator.
- Dr. Audie Davis, aerospace and preventive medicine, former manager of the FAA Aeromedical Certification Division.
- Dr. Ian Fries, orthopedic surgeon, senior aviation medical examiner, former U.S. Air Force flight surgeon, frequent author and lecturer on aviation safety and medical issues.
- Dr. Stanley Mohler, vice chairman and director of the Aerospace Medicine Residency Program at Wright State (Ohio) University, former chief of the FAA Civil Aeromedical Institute, and former chief of the FAA Aeromedical Applications Division.
- Dr. Ramon Pabalon, emergency medicine, active GA pilot and aircraft owner.
- Dr. Stacy Vereen, senior aviation medical examiner, president of the Civil Aviation Medical Association.
- Kathleen Yodice, AOPA counsel, former litigation and policy counsel for the FAA.
The 360,000-member Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is the world's largest pilot organization.
Advocacy on medical certification is just one of AOPA's initiatives to reduce the regulatory burden and cost of flying for all general aviation pilots.
00-4-012
October 21, 2000
