Weird but useful lesson.

Shepherd

Shepherd

Final Approach
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Shepherd
I've worn glasses because of astigmatism since I was in the Fifth Grade.
Yesterday I was at my hanger and one of my neighbors was getting ready to go out and his glasses fell apart while he was doing his run up. He shut down because he couldn't find his backup pair (they were on the bench in his hanger which he couldn't see because well, no glasses) and he didn't have a repair kit with him.
I had a repair kit in my car, and in a few minutes he was all set, legal again and off on his way.
Good thing it happened when it did, says he.
Yeah. Glad it didn't happen someplace else, like in the plane, says me.
Then I realized I don't carry a repair kit for my glasses in my flight bag. I don't think I ever have.
I do now.
 
Shepherd said:
I've worn glasses because of astigmatism since I was in the Fifth Grade.
Yesterday I was at my hanger and one of my neighbors was getting ready to go out and his glasses fell apart while he was doing his run up. He shut down because he couldn't find his backup pair (they were on the bench in his hanger which he couldn't see because well, no glasses) and he didn't have a repair kit with him.
I had a repair kit in my car, and in a few minutes he was all set, legal again and off on his way.
Good thing it happened when it did, says he.
Yeah. Glad it didn't happen someplace else, like in the plane, says me.
Then I realized I don't carry a repair kit for my glasses in my flight bag. I don't think I ever have.
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I used to have old pairs (with the coke bottle lens) in the flight bag, glove box of the car, here, there, and everywhere.

But, thanks to cataracts, I only need them for reading. This may sound crazy, but now I can actually get up in the middle of the night and pee without putting them on.
 
Shepherd said:
Then I realized I don't carry a repair kit for my glasses in my flight bag. I don't think I ever have.
I do now.
Click to expand...
Or backup glasses? Seems more practical (though maybe more expensive). Especially since trying to repair glasses, while not wearing glasses, while flying an airplane, might rate a significant degree of difficulty.
 
My sunglasses have bifocals and I carry an extra set of readers in with me.
 
Mikey B said:
Or backup glasses? Seems more practical (though maybe more expensive). Especially since trying to repair glasses, while not wearing glasses, while flying an airplane, might rate a significant degree of difficulty.
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I agree. I keep my most recent old pair in my flight bag. My prescription changes so very little that I really can’t tell the difference between old and new. Plus I typically wear my prescription sunglasses when I fly and have my clear lens pair in my pocket. So I am covered pretty well if the ones on my face break.
 
I think Delta OPSPECS required TWO PAIR. Presumably just for that reason.
 
I carried 2 pairs. One prescription sunglasses and one clear. That way if anything happened to one of the pair I had a spare.

Ok, I really did not plan it that way, it is just everyone told me that they can't do transitions in bifocals.
 
Zeldman said:
I carried 2 pairs. One prescription sunglasses and one clear. That way if anything happened to one of the pair I had a spare.
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I just carried my prescription sunglasses…still worked at night the couple times I needed them.
 
Well, musta been the FOM. It was somewhere...
 
Legally, anyone who wears glasses is required to have a spare pair in the plane with them.
Stuff happens, they get left on the car seat, they get so old they are useless.
Things to think about.
 
somewhat related. I had gone for a scenic flight after work with my prescription sunglasses. It was still daylight out but, the inside of a highwing gets darker than i realized during sunset. Now i make sure i always have regular glasses with me.
 
Shepherd said:
I've worn glasses because of astigmatism since I was in the Fifth Grade.
Yesterday I was at my hanger and one of my neighbors was getting ready to go out and his glasses fell apart while he was doing his run up. He shut down because he couldn't find his backup pair (they were on the bench in his hanger which he couldn't see because well, no glasses) and he didn't have a repair kit with him.
I had a repair kit in my car, and in a few minutes he was all set, legal again and off on his way.
Good thing it happened when it did, says he.
Yeah. Glad it didn't happen someplace else, like in the plane, says me.
Then I realized I don't carry a repair kit for my glasses in my flight bag. I don't think I ever have.
I do now.
Click to expand...
I learned that lesson on a long cross country flight. Glasses broke and only had my sunglasses as a spare. It is really hard to land at night wearing your sunglasses!!!!!! I told the tower I wanted to fly the ILS approach.
 
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Scott@KTYR said:
I learned that lesson on a long cross country flight. Glasses broke and only had my sunglasses as a spare. It is really hard to land at night wearing your sunglasses!!!!!! I told the towel I wanted to fly the ILS approach.
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Mikey B said:
Or backup glasses? Seems more practical (though maybe more expensive). Especially since trying to repair glasses, while not wearing glasses, while flying an airplane, might rate a significant degree of difficulty.
Click to expand...
I carry a newer set of glasses and my sunglasses as spares when I fly, plus a brand new repair kit.
I'm turning into a belt and suspenders geezer.
 
I carry a medium tint pair in my flight bag as a backup. I'll wear prescription sunglasses during the day, and also carry a clear pair for day/night flight. The medium tint works well enough as a backup for either day or night. Clear is too much for my eyes in the sunny daytime to fly with.
 
Small data point. I have progressive lenses, and transitions. They work great. I have a pair of blue clip-ons that are most likely polarized, but they let me see electronic displays clearly, cut glare down, and let enough light through to darken my lenses. I don't carry spares, but it's been years since I broke my glasses. Also, I could have gotten my most recent Driver's License w/o using correction but didn't.
 
Groundpounder said:
I bought a pair of backup glasses that were $11 including shipping. I'm not going to win any fashion contests, but keeps me legal and safe. www.zenni.com.
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I bought my primary pair from Zenni and they were as good as the $600 - $800 ones I got from the big named brick and mortar eyeglass stores. I’m as happy with them as any other pair I’ve owned.
 
Doc Holliday said:
If you had astigmatism that “corrected itself” you would be a medical miracle. :rolleyes:
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I used to have astigmatism in both eyes, but over time the left eye corrected. I still need contacts for near-sightedness but now only need astigmatism correction in the right eye.

I guess miracles happen.
 
Half Fast said:
I used to have astigmatism in both eyes, but over time the left eye corrected. I still need contacts for near-sightedness but now only need astigmatism correction in the right eye.

I guess miracles happen.
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Happened with me. Minor astigmatism in one eye kept me out of Army Warrant Officer flight school on two successive physicals. Finally said screw it and went through OCS to get commissioned. Show up at Ft. Campbell to be a training officer. Late in the day one Friday on impulse I went out to the dispensary on Campbell Army Airfield for yet another try. Turned out everybody was gone except a very cool specialist five in the office, God bless him. We filled out all the physical paperwork, I “passed” all the tests, and went to flight school. After the first four month phase at Fort Wolters Texas, everybody had to take another physical before going to the second phase at Ft. Rucker. I wasn’t worried this time because the rule was you could stay in the program once you had been assigned even if your vision had slipped. Strangely, my vision turned out to be 20/20 and even went down to 20/15 at one point, for a couple decades after that. My theory was that focusing at a distance, starting out there in that West Texas sky day after day did the trick.
 
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Same for me. As a kid I was a bookworm. Read constantly. When I finally got out of the house, and was forced to look out to the horizon, the astigmatism gradually went away.
In my dotage, I can't read a word without my cheaters, but I still have near 20/20 vision and no astigmatism.
 
I lost my glasses once at Oshkosh, first time I lost a pair of glasses in many many years. I just happened to have a backup pair on me, I usually didn't carry them. I do now.
 
Piperonca said:
Happened with me. Minor astigmatism in one eye kept me out of Army Warrant Officer flight school on two successive physicals. Finally said screw it and went through OCS to get commissioned. Show up at Ft. Campbell to be a training officer. Late in the day one Friday on impulse I went out to the dispensary on Campbell Army Airfield for yet another try. Turned out everybody was gone except a very cool specialist five in the office, God bless him. We filled out all the physical paperwork, I “passed” all the tests, and went to flight school. After the first four month phase at Fort Wolters Texas, everybody had to take another physical before going to the second phase at Ft. Rucker. I wasn’t worried this time because the rule was you could stay in the program once you had been assigned even if your vision had slipped. Strangely, my vision turned out to be 20/20 and even went down to 20/15 at one point, for a couple decades after that. My theory was that focusing at a distance, starting out there in that West Texas sky day after day did the trick.
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Last year my near was 20/30 on my flight physical. This year I went to a new AME because my old one retired. I brought readers but somehow got 20/20 near and didn’t need them. While I still use readers for books, kinda wonder if my old AME didn’t have his machine calibrated properly.

It’s funny though, I’ve read a few books about military aviators where they admit to straight up cheating on the eye exam. Bob Hoover failed, then the eye doc told him he was going to walk out of the office and come back in. He passed on the second try. ;)
 
Another cheating story: same flight school class as I mentioned earlier, we had an overweight fella. He was just plain old built stocky. Nowhere close to the 200 pounds maximum Army pilots were allowed in those days. When his turn came to step up on the scales everybody was crowded close around laughing including the medics. But that was part of the plan. Several of us eased up behind Jerry all of us pretending to look at the scale but we got our hands on his belt and lifted very carefully when he stepped up. Magically passed the weigh in.
 
I carry my most recent old pair in my flight bag.

Also, during a flight review a few years ago I practiced flying the pattern and landing with my glasses off just to see how it went. I had talked it over with the CFI beforehand and figured it was the best time to try it with him in the right seat. For me it was no problem. My left eye is slightly far sighted and my right eye is fairly near sighted. Using them both I get the job done. I wouldn’t purposely fly that way but I wanted to know what I could do in a pinch.
 
I once had a contact lens blow off my finger at the outside mirrors by the showers at Oshkosh, never to be found again. It was the morning I was going to depart. Luckily I had a pair of glasses with me as well.

I've since had LASIK and wish I would have done it 15 years sooner. I'll probably need to get readers soon.
 
Piperonca said:
Another cheating story: same flight school class as I mentioned earlier, we had an overweight fella. He was just plain old built stocky. Nowhere close to the 200 pounds maximum Army pilots were allowed in those days. When his turn came to step up on the scales everybody was crowded close around laughing including the medics. But that was part of the plan. Several of us eased up behind Jerry all of us pretending to look at the scale but we got our hands on his belt and lifted very carefully when he stepped up. Magically passed the weigh in.
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Mike Novosel slipped by on the height requirement. He was only an 1/8 “ too short but they failed him. Flight surgeon erased it and put 5’ 4” and sent him on his way.

By the way, don’t know if you heard but Rucker is getting renamed to Ft Novosel.
 
Velocity173 said:
Mike Novosel slipped by on the height requirement. He was only an 1/8 “ too short but they failed him. Flight surgeon erased it and put 5’ 4” and sent him on his way.

By the way, don’t know if you heard but Rucker is getting renamed to Ft Novosel.
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Nothing could be more appropriate. Chief Warrant Officer Novosel was a giant among men.

One more thing about him and his eyes...read somewhere that he had glaucoma and would be flying along in his Huey putting in eye drops so he could see.
 
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