Can your eyesight issues dampen the chances of becoming a pilot?

By Capt. Ankur Thakur

One of the frequently asked questions is – Can a Pilot wear glasses? I get this question a lot from young aviation enthusiasts. They say that they are worried because their eyesight isn't the best and therefore they wear glasses.

Let's get started and try to find out a response to this. Okay before beginning any discussion please be advised that I'm not an aeronautical medical doctor. Although I passed medical, but I've studied to become a pilot not a doctor. So, all the information I'm giving you today is based on a very long interview with my medical doctor during my last medical examination and further research that I've done on the internet. 

So, whatever you do before you dive into your aviation career seek advice from a certified aeronautical medical doctor or an optician. They will be able to give you the information you need before pursuing a career in aviation. 

Overall the answer is – Yes, you can wear glasses and become an airline pilot. 

I know quite a few colleagues of mine who wear glasses. So, these pilots are definitely allowed. But there are certain limits which govern the usage of glasses. Hence, for the first question the answer is – No, you don't need to have perfect vision. However, you are required to have a certain standard to become an airline pilot, as you have to pass the requirements for a Class 1 medical. These standards can vary from country to country but here we'll stick to the DGCA India regulations. So, the minimum requirement for a class 1 Medical is 6/6 vision. Now you need to understand what is 6/6 vision.  

I'm sure many of you have seen Snellen chart. The logic behind this chart is to measure your vision accuracy by stepping back 6 meters away from the chart. And then the doctor would want you to close one eye with your hand and start to read out the first line. Now if you could only read out the first line that would mean your vision is 6 meters over 60 meaning that a person with normal vision or standard vision of 6/6 can read the first line at a distance of 60 meters.

So your goal is to be able to read the line of 6 vision from a distance of 6 meters to get 6/6 vision.

My vision for example is 6/5 so that means I can read the lowest line for which a person of standard vision will have to move one meter forward to be able to read the line. 

When humans are young, the average visual acuity of a healthy, emmetropic eye (or ametropic eye with correction) is approximately 6/5 to 6/4, so it is inaccurate to refer to 6/6 visual acuity as "perfect" vision. 6/6 is the visual acuity needed to discriminate two contours separated by 1 arc minute- 1.75 mm at 6 meters.

Now the doctor will do another medical test to measure your near vision accuracy. With a similar chart. Here, also your vision is checked to be under the said limits. So, that clearly means that if you have to wear glasses to read the line of 6/6 vision on Snellen chart than you are within limits. And that is acceptable to the regulating authority also. 

Now if you are wearing glasses because you have hypermetropia meaning you have a good far sightedness than the correction should not exceed +4.5 dioptre. If you have myopia meaning you have good short-sightedness than the limits are not to exceed -5.5 dioptre. 

Astigmatism not to exceed +2 dioptre and anisometropia meaning both eyes need individual correction shall not exceed +/- 2 dioptre. 

If you have to wear glasses while piloting a plane then it is a legal and mandatory requirement that you bring a spare set of glasses in case the one which you are using break or you lose them. You can always use the spare set.

The next test is the colour vision test for which most doctors use the Ishihara plate which is commonly known as the colour blindness test. 

This test consist of 38 different plates each of them consist of coloured dotted plates. They show either a number or path which is used to check your colour vision. You can also try a few examples from Ishihara plate here - https://colormax.org/color-blind-test/.

These are the most common checks which are frequently used during your medical examination. But there are many more like the night vision test or how fast your eyes are able to focus different objects at different distances and this is tested every 5 years before your 40^th birthday and every 2 years after your turn 40. 

Now there's another thing called the refractive eye surgery. So, yes having your eyes laser treated is possible to some extent. But personally I would wear glasses first before considering eye surgery. And again to get answers to these questions it is best to consult a certified aeronautical medical practitioner.

Also, if you want to apply for a specific airline make sure to check for the medical requirements because some airlines set their own requirements which can be above the standards of the aviation authority. 

Lastly, I will share my personal experience regarding my first medical and eye examination, I wanted to be 100% sure before I started my career in aviation. So, I went to a Class 2 medical examiner who had retired from the Indian Air Force and requested him to run all sorts of tests on me which they do for Air Force Pilots. After clearing that medical with the standards of Indian Air Force, I found the Class 1 medical to be piece of cake.

About the Author:

Capt. Ankur Thakur is working with the National Flag carrier of India, Air India. He works in the capacity of First Officer for the Boeing fleet. His total work experience in Aviation is more than six Years.