What Are The Health Requirements To Obtain A Private Pilot’s License?
I’m thinking of taking flying lessons and wondered what the health requirements are. I am color-blind. Would that affect my eligibility? What are any other health requirements?
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You should be in good general health and free of any medical conditions which might cause you to become incapacitated in flight, such as epilepsy, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, hypertension (because of the increased risk of incapacitating heart problems or stroke), etc.
You can get a license if you are color-blind. If you can pass any one of about two dozen approved color vision tests, you can get an unrestricted license. Otherwise, you’ll generally get a license that doesn’t allow night flight or flight without a working radio.
That’s how it works in the U.S. Other countries may differ.
In general, the medical requirements for pilots are still very strict and somewhat inconsistent—if you’ve ever had a seizure in your life, you might be disqualified, but if you take a drug like ethanol daily, no problem. The FAA claims that at least 95% of all applicants can obtain a medical certification allowing them to fly.
If you can’t get a license, you can still fly, but only with a licensed pilot who acts as pilot in command. So you could fly a small Cessna with yourself and a licensed pilot friend on board, for example.
Basic good health without a history of diabetes, hypertension, heart or mental condition or physical inability to control the aircraft, decent vision, warm and breathing