A flight physical is mandatory for pilots with major U.S. carriers

November 17, 1999
Web posted at: 12:33 p.m. EST (1733 GMT)

In this story: Must be sound of body and mind Flight simulator employed RELATED STORIES, SITES

From National Correspondent Mike Boettcher

ATLANTA (CNN) -- Pilots for major U.S. carriers face a battery of tests twice a year that determine whether their skills and mental and physical condition make them fit to fly the huge, sophisticated aircraft that crisscross the world on a daily basis.

For pilot Tim McKibben, a major part of the screening process is the flight physical conducted by Dr. Dave Roberts of Atlanta, one of hundreds of doctors in the United States who is certified by the Federal Aviation Administration to be an aviation medical examiner.

"When I'm seeing a pilot, I'm taking care of the pilot -- but I'm doing it for the FAA," said Roberts. "I'm an agent of the FAA, and that's who I report to, so it's far more important that I meet their needs than the patient's needs."

The physical lasts about one hour, during which the pilot's livelihood is on the line.

"There are clearly stated problems that we have to identify and have to uncover. The overlying theme is things that would lead to sudden incapacitation," Roberts said.

"So it is probably less important to do preventive health and find a cancer early or risk factors -- than it is to make sure the patients don't already have problems that could lead to sudden incapacitation."

Must be sound of body and mind

The pilot must be certified, not just fit of body, but fit of mind as well. Since a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation is not part of the standard process, doctors must use their intuition instead.

"We don't do formal neuro-psychiatric testing, but clearly there is a lot of opportunity for us to evaluate the patient's ability to read, write, cognition -- think clearly -- answer questions, mental status, focus, evidence of depression, clearly delusions of psychosis, things that we can get a gestalt for," said Roberts.

"If there is any question at all, we have to make sure we stop and refer out for more definitive testing," the doctor said.

Roberts found Tim McKibben to be fit to fly, but the pilot's evaluation doesn't stop at the doctor's examining room.

Pilots must go through at least two check rides each year in a flight simulator

Flight simulator employed

McKibben moves next to a less friendly examination room -- a sophisticated flight simulator. Airline pilots must go through at least two check rides each year, where they confront a number of in-flight emergencies.

When he's not flying, McKibben's other job is to evaluate a fellow pilot's proficiency in the simulator.

"We're looking that they can work the procedures, do the procedures in the airplane," McKibben said. "That they have the hands not only to read the book and know what to do -- but actually make the airplane do what it needs to do to operate safely."

A pilot found not up to the test is sent back for more training.

But what if a pilot's skills are dulled by factors outside the cockpit -- such as personal problems, depression or substance abuse? By and large, it's up to the industry itself to identify those pilots, or depend on the honor of the pilots themselves to raise the red flag.

McKibben has also passed that personal test.

"My wife was expecting a baby, and she was having difficulties in her pregnancy," he said. "I called, and my friend, the doctor's wife, answered the phone, and I said, 'How are things going?' And she said, 'Well, the ambulance has left now.'

"That was a pretty traumatic thing to happen to me -- just to call home out of the blue and the ambulance has just left," McKibben recalled.

"So at that point I was too distracted to safely operate the airplane, and that was my call, my judgment and I called the scheduler and made other arrangements," he said.

Each new model of aircraft is more sophisticated than the one before it, but the men and women who pilot them are merely human, with all the strengths and weaknesses that implies.

In the flying business, safety hinges on elimination of the weak pilots and the survival of the strong.

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