Today it was time to visit the medical examiner to have my flight physical done. Apparently they want you healthy before they let you fly by yourself, I suppose something about not wanting you to have something physically wrong, rendering you unable to fly your plane and fall out of the sky…
The distance vision test was perfect. The doctor asked me to read the lowest line that I could, and that the FAA wanted at least line four. Line four? No problem. I read the bottom line, number six without difficulties.
After that were tests for color blindness and close vision. He dropped in the plate and said “Read the lowest line you can, the FAA wants at least line four.”
Me: Uh-oh… “I can only read down to line two…”
Dr: “That’s okay, read line two.”
So I read that line and then… he handed me a pair of reading glasses and said “Try again.”
I put them on and said “Wow, I can read everything, even line six.”
He said they were the weakest ones available, 1.00 and that it wouldn’t affect my being able to fly but he would have to put on my medical certificate that I had to have glasses available for near vision.
Dr: “How old are you?”
Me: “I’ll be 44 this year.”
Dr: “Yeah, that’s about right. People with great distance vision always have the near stuff go away. Usually near vision is tested at 24″ but the FAA has us test at 16″, that’s what got you.”
Oh well, I knew this day was coming. I have felt it for quite a while that the near stuff was going away.
Good news is, I’m healthy and have my third class medical certificate.
