Piloting a plane is a highly demanding skill that requires a great deal of focus and expertise. Apart from the intense level of professional training pilots have to undergo before they can get a license, there are other factors that decide how effective a pilot can be. One of such is good eyesight. Unlike car drivers, the requirements that aircraft pilots have to meet are much stricter and more extensive. And this is quite understandable. 

When you compare the fatality rate (in percentage) of aircraft accidents to that of auto crashes, you may begin to worry about the state of your pilot each time you board a plane. But how about having or being a colorblind pilot? Is it accepted in aviation, and what are the factors involved?

In very simple terms, yes, you can get a pilot’s license if you’re colorblind. But this is largely dependent on the severity of your color blindness and the type of aircraft you intend to fly. Commercial and private pilot license requirements often demand a pilot to be able to fully recognize certain colors. While it is not clearly stated in official documents, these colors generally include red, green, and yellow.

On the other hand, most national military forces do not even consider any form of color blindness whatsoever. This may lead many to question how color blindness is related to a pilot’s ability to fly a plane. In this article, we’ll discuss answers to this and other related questions.

How Does Color Blindness Affect Piloting?

There are pilots and members of the aviation community around the world who disagree with some of the existing color vision standards for pilots. Some color blind pilots also argue that being color blind doesn’t affect your ability to be a good pilot in any way. But the real question, however, is: how exactly does color blindness affect pilots. The major reason why it is more preferable for a pilot to have a perfect color vision is the need to identify different lights both in the cockpit and outside the plane.

Most aircraft use status indicators in the form of red/green LED in the cockpit, and a color-blind pilot may face significant difficulties identifying these colors. Another contributing factor is the mental agility that is required in real-life piloting conditions to process all this information either during takeoff or landing.

The other alternative to these lights is the use of a combination of text and color. But combining color and text in electro-mechanical systems is significantly more expensive and more complicated. This is the main reason why manufacturers have stuck with the color options even though they may be color blindness unfriendly.

Some of the slightly colorblind pilots may have difficulties recognizing signs such as airport beacons, chart symbols, aircraft position lights, approach-slope indicators, etc. The risk increases to a certain extent when flying at night. Many prospective pilots only get to discover their color blindness when they take the required medical tests. This is possible because some degrees of color blindness do not directly affect the patient’s daily life.

But in most countries, people with a color deficiency — even of green and red — are still permitted to fly. However, they are issued a license with restrictions. For example, the American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) restricts color-blind pilots from flying at night or in airports that use color signals guidance systems. And that’s a rather limited license!

Pilot License Vision Requirements

While recruiters always prefer to hire pilots with 20/20 vision, official medical requirements — vision inclusive — often differ depending on the different pilot categories. The FAA and other similar authorities around the world issue medical certificates in three classes namely First, Second, and Third class certificates. Vision requirements for each of these certificates are categorized into distant, near, intermediate, and color vision requirements.

First-Class Certificate Vision Requirements (Airline Transport Pilots)

The most demanding of these certificate classes, of course, is the First class certificate. But its requirements are quite close to those of the Second class certificate. A First-class medical certificate is issued to an airline transport pilot. An airline transport pilot is not just another commercial pilot. He/she is required to have the ability to manage large aircraft and take quick decisions on behalf of the whole crew, even in the most critical flight conditions. This is why many airlines often prefer pilots with a military background and or proven leadership capacity.

In general, first-class pilots are required to possess 20/20 distant vision, and 20/40 near and intermediate vision — all with or without correction by lenses or surgery. The color vision requirement is quite vaguely stated as “Ability to perceive those colors necessary for the safe performance of airman duties.” As earlier stated, the colors referred to are the red-green combination.

But the major gripe with first-class medical certification is that if the pilot is above 40 years of age, they must renew their certificates every six months as against the 1-year timeline for other pilots. Interestingly, an airline pilot is also permitted to take advantage of a second-class pilot’s privileges.

Second-Class Certificate Vision Requirements (Commercial Pilots)

A second-class medical certificate requires almost the same standards as the first-class certificate. The only major differences are the fact that the 12-month renewal requirement is the same regardless of age and some jobs cannot be secured with a second-class certificate. So, in essence, the commercial pilot’s license requires the same 20/20 distant vision, and 20/40 near and intermediate vision. A similar basic requirement goes for color vision.

Second-class pilots can generally fly passengers and cargo commercially, mostly for hire. But they cannot fly large scheduled flights. With a commercial pilot’s license, a pilot can exercise private pilot privileges for 2 years.

Third-Class Certificate Vision Requirements (Private Pilots -PPL)

The medical requirements for obtaining a third-class medical certificate are the least of all three. The requirements make no demands pertaining to intermediate vision and permit pilots with 20/40 near and distant vision to hold the certificate — with or without correction. The color vision requirements are not any different in this category either.

Third-class medical certificates are required for pilots who fly for recreational and personal purposes. They may include student pilots, flight instructors (acting as a required crewmember), and recreational pilots. Private pilot medical certificates are valid for 24 months for pilots above 40 and 60 months for others.

Military Pilot Vision Requirements

As one would expect, the vision requirements — and medical requirements in general — for military pilots are very strict. Originally, many militaries did not admit applicants with any form of eye deficiencies at all. While most armed forces still do not allow color-blind pilots, they now allow candidates to correct their vision, especially by laser eye surgery (commonly called LASIK). Now, most military vision requirements demand eyesight correctable to 20/20.

In order to be admitted into flight training in the Air Force, the candidate can have no vision worse than 20/70 and correctable with lenses or surgery to 20/20. The standard is a bit higher for candidates in the Navy and Marine Corps — 20/40 vision in each eye (correctable to 20/20). After completing training and in the course of service, it is expected that the eyesight may deteriorate with age. It must, however, not become worse than 20/400 in all military outfits.

How to Become a Pilot If You’re Colorblind

If you’re colorblind, you can still become a pilot. The only underlying truth is that your path to becoming a pilot may be a little different or more engaging — that’s an encouraging way to put it.

In order to obtain or retain your pilot license, you must pass a series of medical tests, including a color vision test. Passing the FAA color vision test can be a little tricky but the good news is that there are different ways to go about it.

The first and traditional way is to undergo a color blindness screening with an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME). In the case where you fail this test (which is highly probable if you’re colorblind), you’re allowed to take other substitute tests which are equally accepted by the FAA. If you still do not have any luck, there’s also an avenue for a job-specific kind of testing.

The most common of the FAA-approved color vision tests are the Pseudoisochromatic Plates Color Vision Tests. They are also generally known as the Ishihara plates test. If one fails one or more of these tests, he can still take the Farnsworth Lantern Test (FALANT).

The last resort in case all of the above fail is to do a final specialized operational medical test which can be taken but once after which no form of testing is allowed again.

Is Flying Colorblind Safe?

Just as pointed out earlier, flying colorblind can be safe depending on the severity of the color blindness and the particular colors the pilot cannot see. There are a good number of commercial and private pilots who are colorblind and have never recorded any form of accident in their careers. This has always been a bargaining chip for many critics of the color vision standards for pilots.

But it still remains true that color vision remains very important for pilots, particularly at night and in airports with color signal control. But if you manage to get a license and you stick to all the set restrictions, you can fly comfortably without any fear of the condition of your sight.

Summary

Piloting no doubt is an interesting career. And while colorblind pilots can fly most commercial and private planes, they may never get a chance to fly anything related to the military. If you’re colorblind and you’re looking to pilot a plane in the near future, then you should absolutely go for it.