Being prepared for an FAA medical exam can often prevent unexpected delays in certification and reduce the associated stress involved. Certainly, for many healthy pilots the FAA medical exam can seem to be so routine that they never have concerns. For other pilots, however, there are medical conditions that make the exam a bit more worrying.
Even if the requirement for these periodic exams seems like yet another obligatory governmental intrusion, the plain fact is that a pilot can’t go to work without having a current and valid medical certificate. It is no different than a required aircraft recurrent training event, and taking the process of obtaining an FAA medical certificate seriously can improve the experience.
Dr. Robert Sancetta is a former DC-10 captain with 11,000 flight hours. He has worked as a Senior AME since 1993 and is appointed as AME Consultant to the FAA Federal Air Surgeon.
