GTaylor27

This is a question primarily for military pilots:

I have been strongly considering, and basically had my mind set on, a military route for flying-be it Marine Air Corps, Air Force, or Navy. I have -1.25 vision, and wear contact lenses. Today as I spoke with my optometrist about upcoming lasik eye surgery he told me that the military will not accept pilots with the knowledge that they have received Lasik because the military only allows PRK surgery. From what I've heard regarding PRK, it is exponentially more painful and takes an ungodly amount of time to completely recover from. Can anyone share any informaton on this subject? I would obviously prefer Lasik (or just to wear corrective lenses if that's not an option) and I'm not informed enough to know if there's any truth to what my optometrist said.

Thanks.

rickair7777

Historically, LASIK was not allowed due the the fact that the cornea is essentially removed and then reattached during the procedure. The concern was that it could later be blown off during an ejection or exposure to an explosion.

The military has recently been experimenting with LASIK for some flight candidates (ROTC, service academy) but I do not know if its approved for off-the-street applicants.

Do not trust what you hear on the internet, the military changes it's policy on pilot vision sometimes and different service have different standards. Get the straight scoop (in writing) from an officer recruiter.

If in doubt, err on the conservative side.

GTaylor27

Sounds about right. I think a drop-in at a recruiting office would probably answer the question outright.

Saint

Utter nonsense. The military regularly accepts off-the-street applicants who've had both LASIK and PRK. It was "new" for the military in 2004, but these day's is regular.

Here is the most current waiver guide (USAF) - as for the other branches, I'm sure you can seek out the same info:

h**p://airforcemedicine.afms.mil/idc/groups/public/documents/afms/ctb_071808.pdf

See page 663

"Approved ASA procedures include: photorefractive keratectomy (PRK), epithelial-laser in-situ
keratomileusis (epi-LASIK), and laser in-situ epithelial keratomileusis (LASEK). Approved ISA
procedures include: standard laser in-situ keratomileusis (LASIK), All Laser LASIK (using a
femtosecond laser for flap creation).
Wave-Front-Guided (WFG) technology combined with ASA and ISA procedures are also approved
and include WFG-PRK and WFG-LASIK."

Also, visit baseops.net and see their medical section for specific details/questions.

EDIT: ALSO! DO NOT LISTEN TO RECRUITERS! Rarely do they know the facts about these types of issues. Many recruiters I've talked to are not even aware that the Air Force has allowed LASIK since 2004. If you have a question about this type of stuff, SEEK OUT THE REGULATIONS. Do not listen to anything anyone tells you, unless they back it up with an official reg.

EDIT 2: I just noticed you posted your refractive error. USAF allows up to 20/40 without a waiver, and 20/70 with a waiver (no surgery required, you wear contacts). The specifics are:

Waiverable Limits > -1.50 but ≤ -3.00 (SEE PAGE 617) - You're good to go!

rickair7777

Boy you're awfully sure of yourself for a CFII. I'm a senior navy guy and my best friend and college roommate is a navy flight surgeon. Last time this subject came up he said changes were in the works, but not all lasik was approved, there are several types and you need the right one.

Also standards are different for CURRENT navy pilots as opposed to pilot CANDIDATES...better make sure you read the right part of the manual. Navy standards are different from air force standards (or at least they always have been).

Yeah, recruiters may not always know everything but they can put you in touch with the military medical folks who do.

Like I said get the info from an official source, in writing. Don't just download a pdf off of the internet...it might not be the latest version.

Saint

Rickair - that was not specifically directed at you, it was a generalization about this topic. The disinformation that floats around about this topic is sometimes frustrating, because I remember how much work I had to do to get a straight answer.

I'd hate to see someone not pursue their dream because they got incorrect info. The PDF I linked comes from the USAF aerospace medical office, and is the latest version of the waiver guide.

I'm sure of myself because I've exhaustively researched this topic - I'm also 8 years in the military

The Walrus

I recently got a friend of my daughter into my old Air Guard Unit after lasik surgery. The guard unit applied and received a waiver for him and he graduated from pilot training 7 months ago.

crewdawg

Very good advice!

I didn't take time to look into it but in 2005 I got in w/o a waiver with 20/70. They told me 20/70 w/o a waiver and up to 20/200 with a waiver.


This is a problem among flight docs in all services, not all of them are up to speed on everything, especially when your dealing with a part time doc in the reserves. Your best bet is going right to the source reg or calling Brooks AFB.

I recently heard that all FCI are now done down at Brooks due to disparities from all the various flight docs...