Military doing eye suregery?

A naval academy representative came to my school today to answer any questions to the upperclassman. As he is a pilot, people asked lots of aviation-related questions. He said that in his class at the academy, there were abour 230 slots for pilot training. He said that the academy was doing laser surgery on those who wanted to become pilots but couldn't because of vision requirements not being met.

I though laser surgery was a major disqualifier for the military and that to be a pilot there you need at least 20/40 uncorrected which can be correctable to 20/20. Did something change or people can still have bad vision and go into the military with laser surgery?

[bullmastiff]

PRK is all that is acceptable, and you must wait 12 months after

Lasik is a no-go

[Stone Cold]

Yes, they are doing the PRK procedure as previously mentioned, and only that procedure is allowed. The military will do this procedure if you are under military medical care (i.e. dependant or on active duty) and you will have to undergo a military Doc's care (usually) as PRK is the old version of the surgery and the military is the only one doing this surgery. (In New England, there were no docs doing the surgery in 2002 in the civilian world). When on Active Duty Navy, I looked into it and the Navy had a 13-36 month waiting period and any aviation rates (jobs) were given priority.

Also to consider is if you don't do all the paperwork in the correct order, you are disqualified. You must be approved for the Navy's program, go through the study, get the surgery, and then wait for eye stabilization to get approved for flight status.

Like I said, this was Navy and about 2 years ago, but people tell me they are still hearing the same thing.

Good luck and remember, once the military has you, you must meet the needs of the military, not what you want to do.

[Doug Taylor]

Man, I was born in the wrong generation. When I was in school it was 20/20 uncorrected, period.

[Stone Cold]

You and me both...I had to be commisioned within 1 1/2 years when I found this out (I was 29 1/2) and just couldn't make all the hoops to get there. Now, since I've heard about the surgery and I've seen others under Navy Medical care, I'm glad I didn't let them cut my eyeballs.

I am actually thinking about joining the ANG and not the Navy. Are the requirements still the same? I'll be going to the eye doctor tommorow and I'll let you guys know how terrible my vision is.

Funny thing is that whenever I do those eye exercises for a few days, my vision actually improves.

[Stone Cold]

[ QUOTE ]
Like I said, this was Navy and about 2 years ago, but people tell me they are still hearing the same thing.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is why I put this in here. I don't know what the requirements are for the ANG. You would have to research that on your own. Each branch has its own requirements and special waivers, etc., that they alow. I know for a while, the Army was letting pilots have 20/70 vision so check all branches if you're really interested.
Good luck and go do a lot of research before you sign on the dotted line.

tx

[aloft]

[ QUOTE ]
Lasik is a no-go

[/ QUOTE ]

Weeeellll.....the times, they is a-changin'.

Air Force aims for ‘weapons-grade’ vision

[MDPilot]

"At this time, WFG-LASIK is not approved for those aviators in high-performance aircraft (such as fighters and trainers) or those whose aircraft have cabin altitudes potentially above 14,000 feet. Conventional LASIK was not approved for any aviator."

This tells me that this special procedure is only being approved for some current AF pilots, not prospective ones who have yet to go to SUPT.

I just noticed a new word :suregery.