color blind

[Guest dracer]

ok im color blind, i can see bloody red and green lights though:radioactive:, whats gunna happen when i try to get my medical for my future GA licence, im stressing my dreams will be shattered. i guess the color blind test book that i aquired can insure i pass the test but i need some help..... to be dodgy or not?

 

 

[Mazda]

Dracer it used to be very difficult but a Doctor by the name of Arthur Pape did a lot of work to have colour blind pilots accepted. I do know colour blind GA pilots are now permitted but I'm not sure what class of medical they are given.

 

 

[Guest brentc]

From memory colour blindness is only a problem for military pilots.

 

Worth checking officially.

 

From memory I recall a pilot dropping bombs on an area which was flagged by a coloured flare, however he couldn't see the colour and ended up bombing friendlies. After that things changed dramatically.

 

 

[Mazda]

I'm told that at the time Arthur Pape worked on this it allowed pilots to go up to CPL. I don't know if changes since then allow ATPL. You could check with CASA (or with Arthur Pape who I think is still practising in Geelong).

 

I spoke to a military pilot who said colour blind pilots will not pass a military medical and perfect colour vision is essential operationally.

 

 

[Guest FreeLance_Flyer82]

just a passing thought....john travolta is colour blind and still he is able to fly at atpl level. Its worth checking out but dont see it being a problem.

 

 

[Matt]

Hi Dracer,

 

I also have a colour perception deficiency (the technical and more accurate term). There are 2 accepted testing methods for aircrew (civil or military) being the Ishihara plates (coloured dots) and the lantern - which is a mechanism which is a simulation of aircraft lights at night as well as tower light gun signals. I am what the miliary categorise as Class 2 - I can't pass the Ishihara plates but I can pass the lantern test and this is acceptable for ADF aircrew.

 

The ICAO and Australian civil standard is that if you can pass one of these tests (usually if you can pass the Ishihara test you won't be tested with the lantern) then you can obtain a Class 1 medical and therefore progress all the way up to ATPL.

 

There are plenty of wives tales, myths and other mis-truths about colour perception in aviation - best thing to do is check the regulations.

 

Cheers,

 

Matt.

 

 

[Guest TOSGcentral]

A bit of comfort for you dracer - I am colour deficient in red/green but see most other colours clearly. Red/green are the primary colours so they become paramount (eg traffic lights - which I also see clearly).

 

Despite all that I have had a lifetime in aviation in Germany, UK & Oz. In the early days I was compelled to fly only radio equipped aircraft (other than gliders) but that sort of faded out although night flying is a different matter. For rec flying you should not have a problem mate.

 

As a bit of trivia - colour deficiency is passed down the generation chain by the female (who may well not have the condition herself) and mainly affects males. A very high proportion of the male population are actually colour deficient but may not realise this.

 

Aye

 

Tony

 

 

[Guest Rocko]

Actually, it becomes pretty simple:

 

If you fudge a test that you're legally required to pass for the aviation level you want, and you're caught, then kiss your future career good bye.

 

If you need to pass such a test, then it's still your responsibility to report such problems, whether they're picked up or not. If you're not prepared to do that, then you're picking the wrong career path.

 

Best contact CASA and ask them, specifically, what the requirements are for what you want.

 

 

[Matt]

With respect to being "dodgy" - there are mulitple versions of the Ishihara (coloured dots) books, various revisions and mutliple manufacturers. It's highly unlikly you'd be able to "dodgy" a pass based on "studying" a single test booklet. If you're planning on going PPL or higher you will need to have a medical with a DAME anyway and they will perform the tests - it's probably worth the money just to confirm what your level of perception deficiency is which will then determine your future.

 

When I was 19 I was first tested by the Air Force when I applied to join as a pilot and failed both the Ishihara Plates and the Lantern - I believe the latter was related to my mental state having just found out I was "colour blind" and thought my dreams of being an Air Force pilot had just been dashed, I didn't pay too much attention to the Lantern test as I don't remember being advised that a pass in that would be sufficient. It took me 14 years but I went and had the full testing done as I just wanted to confirm whether I could progress to Night VFR or not. Turns out I wasn't as "colour blind" as initially thought and passed the Lantern test with 100%.

 

Spend the money to get tested as early as possible, it may save you years of heartache of thinking you're not permitted to do something that you may actually be able to do.

 

Cheers,

 

Matt.

 

 

[Guest Rocko]

Thats a very good point, Matt.

 

Colour blindness as such is very rare. (ie. Black and white only) It's really "colour deficiency". It varies from very mild, to total R/G deficient.

 

If it' mild, you may have no prolems passing. If it's more severe, it'd be good o know regardless.

 

A mild deficiency just means the mix of colours seen is a bit outside "normal". This would be perfectly adequate to pass a lantern test.

 

Scotty

 

 

[Ben Longden]

Get in touch with Dr Ian Fitzgerald at the Aviation Medicine section of CASA. This guy is really helpful and will give you the right advice.

 

Ben

 

 

[Guest dracer]

my problem is not saying the right number when presented with the DOT system.

 

basically i used to color grass brown and trees green when i was a kid, if u write with red chalk on a black board it looks slightly 3 dimensional. selecting the right color crayon or texta for the job is difficult, UNTIL im told "no thats purple" then i realise the difference.

 

i know what a bloody red and green light is.

 

 

[Matt]

red text on a blue background does it for me - all the letters look like they're moving!

 

trick is not the red and green ones usually - the lantern test usually gets you with the white ones. they present 2 coloured lights which could be green, red or white. I find the red are usually fine, green and white can be a little difficult to distinguish as can red and white. Strangely the advent of LED lights has pretty well resolved that, the colours are so much more pronounced than a white light behind a coloured lens or a coloured light bulb.