Originally Posted by
sherpster
I have talked with retiring military folks who are stressing over VA disability and getting a FAA physical. The FAA will give you a Class 1 medical even if you have all kinds of crap wrong with you. Just report it and deal with it. If you havent reported it yet then contact your regional FAA flight medical office and tell them the TRUTH today and they will get you squared away. They are the medical side of the FAA, not the enforcement side. If it is true these 3 guys were major airline pilots then can you imagine what a dumb move this was for these guys to not report their conditions?????? I have no idea if they will go to prison or not but it would not surprise me if they do. They say the VA hands out disability like candy (true) but the FAA hands out Class 1's like candy also. They dont care about your knee, wrist, elbow, or whatever else you have wrong with you. If you are claiming some mental issue with the VA then maybe you shouldnt be flying until you get that squared away. JUST BE HONEST PEOPLE!
While I agree with your assertion to be honest on the medical application (because dishonesty is a crime), your post seems to suggest that people who declare disabilities to the VA shouldn't have any worries on an FAA medical application. This is not the case.
A patient who has been diagnosed with psychiatric problems, for example, will face an uphill battle in obtaining an FAA medical certificate, particularly if medication is involved. Likewise, numerous physical disabilities claimed from the VA will impact one's ability to hold medical certification for flying. One should be aware that having been diagnosed, and having declared it, there's no getting around it on the medical application, or the consequences for declaring it on the medical application.
The single most common disability for veterans is hearing loss. Little wonder, for those who have been in situations conducive to hearing loss, which is a great deal of military operations, combat or otherwise. This also impacts the ability to hold a medical certificate. Fortunately in that case, it's testable and fairly straight forward; not so with many other conditions.
Yes, be honest, yes, don't hide anything, and yes, declare it when applying for a medical certificate, but also be prepared for the steps necessary to obtain the medical, including waivers, additional testing, and so forth. The disability may be worth a little money from the VA, but it may also cost a lot going in for the FAA medical, and may cost on a recurring basis. Anyone considering pursuing a flying career should take that into account, if looking ahead down the road.