25 October 2022
Nearly 600 pilots in the UK could be flying with a Pilot Medical Declaration (PMD) incorrectly, says the UK CAA. But the way the CAA has reached that figure appears to be seriously flawed.
A figure of 576 pilots who should not be holding a PMD is the result of a calculation the CAA has made in a just-launched consultation on the Pilots Medical Declaration (PMD).
The PMD is a declaration of your medical ‘fitness to fly’ and may be used to exercise the privileges of a qualifying pilot’s licence with certain conditions and limitations.
The CAA consultation says, “We have currently reviewed 800 out of 14,400 PMD holders. We looked at around 400 pilots who had previously had a medical status of unfit or had a medical referred. We also looked at another sample of 400 pilots who had no previous unfit or referred status.
“We have found 4% of the 800 PMD holders that we reviewed should not be self-declaring for various reasons. If this percentage represents the whole number of PMD holders, the number made in error is of concern to the CAA.
“These errors included disqualifying heart conditions, neurological conditions and drug/alcohol misuse. It is not clear to us whether this is due to unclear guidance material or a misunderstanding on the pilot’s part.”
If the CAA’s figure of 4% is applied to 14,400 PMD holders, that’s 576 pilots who should not have declared.
However, pilots on the FLYER forum have pointed out that the CAA’s methodology is flawed. By taking a sample of 400 pilots who have previously failed a medical, the result is already biased. The CAA should have taken a random sample of PMD holders rather a group which known to have issues.
The CAA consultation opened yesterday, 24 October, and will run until 5 December. It’s likely to be a contentious subject for many pilots who would have given up flying but for the PMD.
Among the questions being asked are: “What has prompted this review?” and “What are the numbers of PMD holders who have become incapacitated during a flight?”
The CAA is asking pilots to respond by reading the consultation document and completing the online survey which comprises 14 questions.
“We would welcome your views on the issues that were originally covered in the consultation that led to the development Pilot Medical Declaration process,” said the CAA.
Click here for the CAA Consultation on Pilot Medical Declarations
