Controversy is brewing between some professional pilots and the Federal Aviation Administration. Several pilots said the Administration's mental health policies are antiquated and restrictive. The FAA says its policies are necessary to protect the safety of U.S. passengers.
Dr. William Hoffman of the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, surveyed about 3,700 pilots and found the majority (56%) reported health care avoidance due to fear of losing their certification to fly. In addition, a recent Washington Post report revealed that nearly 5,000 pilots may have falsified their medical records to conceal a mental health condition that could make them unfit to fly.
Professional pilots have to complete a FAA-directed medical exam every six months to five years, based in part on their age, to determine their mental health and fitness to fly. Part of that process is to report any visit with a mental health professional, any diagnosis, and all medications taken. “Yes” to any those questions takes a pilot out of the cockpit during an investigation that could take up to two years.
Pilot and attorney Joe LoRusso said the FAA’s policies are outdated and restrictive, resulting in pilots either seeing a counselor, but not disclosing it or not seeking treatment at all.
“That lack of treatment just compounds, and what could be acute anxiety or acute depression due to maybe the loss of a loved one compounds and builds, and eventually, with no treatment, it’s going to reach its breaking point,” LoRusso said.
He said the issue is not only impacting pilots personally, but also adding to the industry’s pilot shortage.
“People aren’t applying because they don’t want to be medically scrutinized or they do disclose treatment and are told they don’t meet the medical standards,” LoRusso added.
Spectrum News 1 reached out to the FAA for comment. A representative provided the following:
FAA Statement
Pilots must report certain mental health conditions to their aviation medical examiner (AME) during their regular medical exams. The FAA encourages pilots to seek help if they have a mental-health condition since most, if treated, do not disqualify a pilot from flying. During the last several years, the FAA has invested resources to eliminate the stigma around mental health in the aviation community so pilots seek treatment. This includes:
- Increasing mental health training for medical examiners
- Supporting industry-wide research and clinical studies on pilot mental health
- Hiring additional mental health professionals to expand in-house expertise and to decrease wait times for return-to-fly decisions
- Completed clinical research and amended policy to decrease the frequency of cognitive testing in pilots using antidepressant medications
The FAA will revoke a pilot's medical certificate if it becomes aware of significant mental health issues.
Additional background
- Aviation medical examiners are trained to determine the pilot’s mental health and fitness to fly. The examiner may request additional psychological testing if necessary. Before these examinations, pilots must disclose any mental health conditions. Commercial airlines often have their own mental health screenings and requirements.
- Listen to a recent FAA podcast about pilot mental health featuring Dr. Northrup, the FAA's federal air surgeon, here.
- Read remarks by former FAA Administrator Steve Dickson on pilot mental health here.
- View the FAA fact sheet on pilot mental health oversight here.