Medical Flight Test

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AMFlying

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AMFlying
I have been working on my PPL and things are going great. I'm at around 8 hours now and finally past the point where the thought of 'solo' makes me sick.

I took my medical exam before starting flight lessons and, after a couple months of patiently waiting, just received the expected 'you do not meet the required standards' letter due to a missing hand. The letter says I need to reply to the letter in order to get authorization to schedule a medical flight test at the FSDO in my area.

I have done a lot of searching here (and everywhere) and can not find any specifics on what this flight test amounts to. The nearest FSDO is 200 miles away. Does the FSDO inspector come to my FBO (I doubt it)? If I go there do they provide a plane or do I fly there with my instructor and then kick him out and fly with the inspector? I'm guessing since I'm only 5 lessons into the process that they will take that into consideration and see my crappy landings, for example, are just because I suck at landings right now and not because of a medical reason?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!
 
http://fsims.faa.gov/WDocs/8900.1/V05 Airman Cert/Chapter 08/05_008_001Rev1.htm

3) Observe an applicant with a deformity or with the absence of an extremity demonstrate the following in an aircraft:
a) The ability to reach and operate effectively all controls which would normally require the use of that extremity (or those extremities). Note any unusual body position the applicant may use to compensate for the defect and what effect that position has on the applicant’s field of vision.
b) The ability to satisfactorily perform emergency procedures relative to flight, such as recovery from stalls, and engine-out procedures (multiengine aircraft).
c) If the pilot has an arm prosthesis and tests in turboprops, the ability to lift the power handles for reversing (including asymmetrical reversing).
d) If the pilot has a deformity or absence of an extremity, determine whether the applicant should be restricted to the specific make and model of aircraft in which the medical flight test is accomplished, to a make and model within a series (e.g., Cessna 172), or to aircraft models with special equipment or control arrangements, and/or determine whether to impose special operating conditions, as necessary.
 
I'm fairly certain that you will have to fly to the FSDO location...the FAA does not have planes or funds to travel to you. Your instructor will have to cool his heels (or ride along, with the examiner's approval). I have had monocular students and paraplegic students. I know of one-armed pilots but never met any. You can do it.

Bob Gardner
 
Is this where a SODA will be required? Statement of Demonstrated Ability. I think you do it once, and unlike a special issuance it doesn't have to be renewed.

At the discretion of the Federal Air Surgeon, a Statement of Demonstrated Ability (SODA) may be granted, instead of an Authorization, to a person whose disqualifying condition is static or nonprogressive and who has been found capable of performing airman duties without endangering public safety.

And I would guess you will indeed need to fly each way with your instructor. But hey, you need flight time, instrument training, cross country navigation training; take advantage of the time and do those things in route.
 
As stated above, you will need to make an appointment with one of the FSDO inspectors and then fly out to their location to perform your SODA flight....

Here are some potentially encouraging things to consider....

I don't think you have to do the SODA flight immediately. But it does need to be done before you do your first solo flight. So you might have time on the calendar to amass 8 to 10 more hours of training and improve your skills at aviating, communicating, and landing.

The 200 mile trip to the FSDO location can be used in your favor. One of the training checkboxes is cross country flying. Take the opportunity of going to the FSDO to learn what is involved with the following skills and do them for that trip
  • Trip planning including route selection and waypoint selection
  • Completing a VFR flight plan sheet that computes wind correction, time between points, fuel used between points, etc.
  • Navigating using VORs, including intercepting and tracking a radial
  • Navigating using GPS
  • Using Flight Following and communicating with the TRACONS and Centers
  • Weather knowledge and how it affects your trip
  • What is FAR 91.103 and why does it matter to you?
  • How to obtain a pre-flight briefing from 1-800-WX-BRIEF
  • How to file a VFR flight plan. And later activate and close it.
  • .... And other cross country items that you need to have done before your check ride. And explain how they are done to the check ride examiner.
So don't look at the 200 mile FSDO journey as an inconvenience. Take them lemons and make it into some super delish lemonade.
​
 
Lemonade? More like lemon merangue pie.
 
Thank you all very much. That is exactly what I was looking for. Yea I think the 200 mile trip will be great practice and look forward to doing it. I will post an update here when I get it finished.

I'm fairly certain that you will have to fly to the FSDO location...the FAA does not have planes or funds to travel to you.
Click to expand...

Kind of funny but when shutting down the plane from my very first lesson a guy walks up to me and asks me how the flight went and about the plane and then asks me for my certificate and medical. It caught me off guard and I just said I don't have either one. He kind of had that 'busted!' look on his face until the CFI came around and told him I was a student on my first lesson. The guy was a FSDO inspector just making random inspections. He was really nice and we chatted for a while and then he moved on to the next plane landing. My CFI indicated that he has never seen them visit before.
 
@AMFlying ... now that you got that first ramp check out of the way, it's smooth flying from here on out.
 
Wow! Hard to believe it has almost been a year already but I thought I would update this thread just in case anyone else is wondering how this medical flight thing works (or for me at least).


FAA guys visit my local flight school periodically through the year anyway so the school requested that the next inspector give me the test while he was there on the next visit- which was a couple weeks after my first post above. They got the details all worked out and the test was scheduled. I was told to relax and it would just be a test of my ability to physically control the plane and nothing else. We are told in writing exactly what paperwork to bring and exactly what we need to have ready. Everything is perfect and we are prepared.

The inspector arrived and, well, just say we didn't immediately hit it off. I get along with ANYONE and have no problem dealing with authority figures... even those throwing around un-earned weight... but this guy.... wow! The school put a lot of effort into getting everything set up for me, otherwise, I would have said some colorful (but not inaccurate) things to him and walked out.

So, about an hour of both me and the lead instructor being verbally beaten ...he is finally satisfied with the paperwork and we make it out to the plane. He does not want to be there. That is obvious. He follows me around while I do my preflight and decides that the electric backup fuel pump does not look 'right'. The lead mechanic (who stayed after hours to be there just in case of something like this) assures him it is correct and provides him documentation. He isn't happy with the paperwork and requires some kind of certification for the pump which they are not able to provide before the sun starts to set so he calls off the flight. He does concede to watching me do a simulated flight in the plane- manipulating all of the switches and going though all of the flight maneuvers on the ground. He slowly mellows out and all is good. We move to a couple other planes in the hanger and he admits that I won't have any problems flying any of them but still, by law, he must actually fly with me and we will schedule another test in a month or so. No problem. I consider the day another small success and I'm happy.

Then 'Rona happened and about the next week or two the school was forced to close for a few months. Work got crazy. The FAA made me send back my temporary medical since I didn't follow through with the flight and, now, I'm getting psyched up to start all over- applying for permission to request to schedule the medical flight test and see where it goes.

Anyway... that is how my experience went. I know I did a lot of researching and could not find many first hand reports of what a medical flight test actually involved so I thought I'd contribute my experience to the information pool here.
 
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Seems like some public servants forget the "service" part of public service. I'm sorry you had such a negative experience, but hope you nave the persistence to not allow an unpleasant person derail your aspirations. I always say "life is unpredictable, misery is optional." I wish you success.
 
Not sure what to do with a guy that “didn’t like how a fuel pump looked”. Can you do another FiSDO?
 
I went through the process a couple of years ago (different medical reason). The FAA Safety Inspector was great. Good luck with getting a better SI next time and good luck going forward. I’ve had my certificate almost two years now and starting IFR very soon. Stay with it!
 
One would think that with a history of one armed pilots going back some 100 years, the FAA would have figured it out by now and wouldn't need to do these rides.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
One would think that with a history of one armed pilots going back some 100 years, the FAA would have figured it out by now and wouldn't need to do these rides.
Click to expand...
Well, not every person missing an extremity is as capable as every other one, but one would think that if you can pass the same checkride as everyone else, then that should be adequate. :confused:
 
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