Noise has always been accepted as one of the prices to be paid for the pleasure and convenience of flying. However, if you are not armed with the knowledge of certain facts about aircraft noise, the price may be high. Your hearing may become permanently impaired. Aeronautical engineers have attempted to cut down aircraft noise … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 17 – Noise

Fatigue is a general term which is difficult to define medically. Usually thought of simply as "tiredness," fatigue may be more aptly described as a depletion of body energy reserves, leading to below-par performance. Because fatigue towers your efficiency as a pilot, you should understand its causes and prevention. Fatigue falls into two broad categories: … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 16 – Fatigue

Although motion sickness is uncommon among experienced pilots, it does occur once in a while. If you have ever been its victim, you know how uncomfortable it is. Most important, it jeopardizes your flying efficiency-particularly in turbulent weather and in instrument conditions when peak skill is required. Student pilots are frequently surprised by an uneasiness … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 15 – Motion Sickness

Cockpit lighting has been the subject of considerable discussion. In military aviation, red lighting was long used in the cockpit and pilots were required to wear red goggles for a certain period of time before night flight. These precautions for night adaptation were necessary because pilots who needed to spot enemy aircraft frequently flew from … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 13 – Cockpit Lighting

A veteran pilot once remarked that night flying is no different from day flying-it's just that at night you can't see anything. Although his statement carries a good deal of truth, you can usually see something. To compensate for what you can't see, you need proper instrumentation. To make the most of your vision at … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 12 – Night Flight

Vision, even under instrument conditions, is perhaps your single most vital faculty in flying. Yet, the best eyes in the world-with 20/20 sight, good depth perception, and well-developed color vision-can play unexpected tricks on the most experienced pilot. The eyes and brain cooperate closely to produce the sensation of sight. Illusions can arise from the … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 11 – Vision

Pilots tend to think of carbon monoxide gas as something produced by a defective muffler, a faulty exhaust system, or a heater leak in the aircraft cabin. When they perform their preflight check of the aircraft and find no breaks or cracks, they feel reassured. Yet, one of the more common sources of carbon monoxide … Continue reading Medical Handbook For Pilots Chapter 10 – Carbon Monoxide