Pilot Medical Disqualificaton (DQ)

[Guest GonnaFlyfoLife]

Hey,

Does anyone know the statistics of people that get DQed at Brooks (on average) each year after they get selected for pilot training?

[VL-16]

They tell you ~98% make it through after the waiver process, but I know a handful of people who have been DQ'd each year, so that can't be too accurate. I'd say 1 in 20 ends up getting the big DQ, but that is just a guess. From my Det, we've lost one person at Brooks each year for the past four years.

[Gravedigger]

They tell you ~98% make it through after the waiver process, but I know a handful of people who have been DQ'd each year, so that can't be too accurate. I'd say 1 in 20 ends up getting the big DQ, but that is just a guess. From my Det, we've lost one person at Brooks each year for the past four years.

Coincidentally (or not) we have lost about 1 a year for the last several years as well. We were also told 98% pass rate when I was at Brooks last August.

[Guest GonnaFlyfoLife]

If someone gets DQed, do they call up a person from the pilot alternate list right away, or do they wait for that person's waiver process to go through first?

[Odium]

I've been curious about people who fail at Brooks since I'm borderline on vision. If someone shows up to Brooks and gets DQ for pilot, can they swap for a Nav slot assuming they meet the Med standards or are they out of luck?

[Guest P27:17]

Several factors go into the DQ rate and not all of them (probably not even most of them are medical).

The folks at Brooks will tell you (and I quote)..."there is on average a 2% to 4 % Hard Down DQ rate on an annual basis"...surprisingly this is not only true from the MFS (only) program but the FC I program as well...hey stop the rumors...go to their website or call them...

[Guest ASUcadet]

Several factors go into the DQ rate and not all of them (probably not even most of them are medical).

The folks at Brooks will tell you (and I quote)..."there is on average a 2% to 4 % Hard Down DQ rate on an annual basis"...surprisingly this is not only true from the MFS (only) program but the FC I program as well...hey stop the rumors...go to their website or call them...

By "Hard Down DQ rate" do you mean that those people have to separate from the Air Force altogether, or that they just get DQed for pilot?

[Guest MizzouNav]

why worry about a %. they don't have quotas they use to meet some DQ requirement. If you have somehting that is disqualifying, you are disqualified.

I don't think it gets much more complicated than that.

[Timbonez]

I was selected as a navigator in college and also as a pilot alternate, which means they sent me to Brooks. We got the same "98% make it through here" speech. Unfortunately, I was one of the 2% and lost the possibility of becoming a pilot. I was also close to losing my nav slot. When I went to Brooks there were three individuals, out of rougly 20, who were going to be DQed from pilot. One was for depth perception and the other two (I was one of the two) had color vision problems. I still have my nav slot, which I'm in the middle of training, but I remember all the personnel there were secretive about everyone's results. Leaving Brook's there were a lot of people who were unsure of what the status of their physical was. I found it very frustrating that they wouldn't let you know how you were doing medically (ultimately they collect the data and then flight surgeons will decide if you are fit to fly), so just be aware of that when you go.

[Guest P27:17]

I was selected as a navigator in college and also as a pilot alternate, which means they sent me to Brooks. We got the same "98% make it through here" speech. Unfortunately, I was one of the 2% and lost the possibility of becoming a pilot. I was also close to losing my nav slot. When I went to Brooks there were three individuals, out of rougly 20, who were going to be DQed from pilot. One was for depth perception and the other two (I was one of the two) had color vision problems. I still have my nav slot, which I'm in the middle of training, but I remember all the personnel there were secretive about everyone's results. Leaving Brook's there were a lot of people who were unsure of what the status of their physical was. I found it very frustrating that they wouldn't let you know how you were doing medically (ultimately they collect the data and then flight surgeons will decide if you are fit to fly), so just be aware of that when you go.

Sorry to hear about your DQ...it's easy to misunderstand the role that the folks at Brooks play...they are the OBJECTIVE expert consultants for the United States Aif Force Medical Service...they are NOT the waiver authority. Folks who go through for the entire physical exam (FC I, MFS, and FAA) all leave without knowing where they stand...Brooks has been directed NOT to give a statement to the examinees as to their waiver status. AETC is the only waiver authority and they have the "power" to concur or not concur with the recommendations coming from Brooks. That being said, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that once someone has been pinged for deficient color vision and that a quick check in the regs or on this board it will let them know they are SOL...no waiver gonna happen.

Chances are MOST (not all...and not saying you) know they have a color problem and have just gotten by or were victims of poor prior screening.

To be honest...your lucky you still have that Nav slot...cause color deficiency is disqy\ualifying (Hard Down) for ALL initial FC exams.

[Guest EverettP]

Just got back from Brooks about a week ago and one of the staff there that debriefed us at the end said one of the most common ways people get DQed is wearing their contacts within 30 days of the appointment. She also said that if you lie they can tell by shape of your eye instantly. They had a Lt. go through it and he wore his contacts for less than a day and lied about it, they could tell that he wore them, and then not only lost his pilot spot...he got the boot from the AF for honor code violation.

I didn't have to worry about it since I don't wear contacts but if I did, I never heard about that rule until I got there.

Moral:

Don't wear contacts 30 days (or whatever they tell you) prior to your appointment, PERIOD.

[Guest Whiplash]

Just got back from Brooks about a week ago and one of the staff there that debriefed us at the end said one of the most common ways people get DQed is wearing their contacts within 30 days of the appointment. She also said that if you lie they can tell by shape of your eye instantly. They had a Lt. go through it and he wore his contacts for less than a day and lied about it, they could tell that he wore them, and then not only lost his pilot spot...he got the boot from the AF for honor code violation.

I didn't have to worry about it since I don't wear contacts but if I did, I never heard about that rule until I got there.

Moral:

Don't wear contacts 30 days (or whatever they tell you) prior to your appointment, PERIOD.

Well what if you can't see? What are you suppose to do?

[Ryder1587]

Wear glasses.

[Guest Whiplash]

Wear glasses.

Trying not to sound like an idiot here, but wouldn't wearing glasses have the same effect as wearing contacts? I may be wrong and probably am. Just wondering.

Edited July 14, 2008 by Whiplash

[brabus]

Glasses don't physically touch your eyes like contacts do. So even knowing nothing about this stuff, I think it's a safe assumption to say glasses will not affect your eyes like contacts since there is no physical contact (in the sense that Brooks is concerned with).

[Guest EverettP]

Trying not to sound like an idiot here, but wouldn't wearing glasses have the same effect as wearing contacts? I may be wrong and probably am. Just wondering.

Contacts actually flatten some part of the eye and can change your vision even without having them in. If you wear hard contacts over night you can keep 20/20 vision up to 3 days afterwards without having them in. Glasses don't affect your eyes after you take them off.

[Guest L Unit]

Contacts actually flatten some part of the eye and can change your vision even without having them in. If you wear hard contacts over night you can keep 20/20 vision up to 3 days afterwards without having them in. Glasses don't affect your eyes after you take them off.

This. People were actually using this tactic to meet the minimum requirements for eyesight (they wouldn't pass otherwise). The 'puffer' test can sense whether you have been wearing contacts, however, and they will know if your eye has been 'tampered' with.

[Guest EverettP]

This. People were actually using this tactic to meet the minimum requirements for eyesight (they wouldn't pass otherwise). The 'puffer' test can sense whether you have been wearing contacts, however, and they will know if your eye has been 'tampered' with.

I'm pretty sure the puffer test is to test your eye pressure for glaucoma, they can tell when they take the pictures of your eyes whether or not you've worn contacts

[Guest Matt90]

Good morning,

I received a pilot slot last spring and I went out to Wright-Patt for my medical this summer. Unfortunately, I was MDQ'ed based on one eye not being correctable to 20/20, it was correctable to 20/21, a history of supraventricular tachycardia with no breakthrough incidents since 1998, and a history of asthma. However, on a retest of my eye I have found out that my eye is correctable to 20/20. My prescription in my glasses changed. I know the SVT is waiverable and I know the asthma stuff is too, as I have never been officially diagnosed, just prescribed an inhaler for bad chest colds. I run my PFT in 9:05 or less. Does anyone know what the procedure is to fight a MDQ? As it is right now I can't do anything other than a desk job because I cannot hold any class of flying physical, even an FCIII.

Very Respectfully,

Matt