Medical Reform in General Aviation

Currently many people feel that the requirements for general aviation pilots to hold a third class medical certificate are unnecessary. Some problems with the certificate process are that it does little to reduce safety and is just another annoying government process.

Third class medical reform has been added to a bill proposed by Senators Joe Machin and Jim Inhofe. Under the new rules general aviation pilots will not have to be certified by a medical examiner every two years but will be certified every four years in addition to taking an online medical course every two years. There is also change on who can examine pilots. Under the new proposal pilots will have the option to be certified by a doctor of their choosing instead of waiting for the few available medical examiners. (Lowy, 2015) The bill seems like it will give pilots more freedom in determining if they are fit to fly.

One aspect of the amendment that I agree with is not requiring a medical examination for pilots who have held a certificate in the past 10 years. I can see how that may be a long time for many people but that is assuming that pilots cannot tell if they are fit to fly or that they haven’t seen a personal doctor at all. I think that reform isn’t necessary but that doesn’t mean that there shouldn’t be any changes. If pilots feel that the current system is broken then and could be more efficient than it is worth looking into. I support the proposed amendments because the requirements for general aviation pilots are just unnecessary and time consuming.

The one thing that I do not understand about the amendment is why the ALPA is against it. Safety cannot be the only reason because light sport pilots do not have to have a medical examination if they hold a current driver’s license. There has also been a few instances where pilots holding a medical license have been involved in accidents while there is little chance that a general aviation pilot will cause threat to an airliner. ALPA’s position is very surprising since general aviation supplies many of its pilots and I’m sure that many who are in the organization want to continue flying after they retire.

References

Lowy, J. (2015, November 18). Senator pushing medical exam bill to benefit pilots like him. Retrieved from AP The Big Story: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/2f0beb20eaac42fbae469726a42dee8a/senator-pushing-medical-exam-bill-benefit-pilots-him

Tennyson, E. (2015, November 18). Committee passes Manchin amendment to Pilot's Bill of Rights 2. Retrieved from Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association: http://www.aopa.org/News-and-Video/All-News/2015/November/18/Committee-passes-Manchin-amendment-to-PBR2