Monday, August 13, 2012

FAA Updates Medical Rules For Trans Pilots

As you longtime TransGriot readers are aware of, I started my own transition in 1994 during my airline days, and I was motivated to do so after one of our Newark based pilots successfully won her anti-trans discrimination lawsuit.  

A year after I did so, she and I finally met one day in Terminal C as she was on a trip that took her through IAH.  

So I was happy to see that FAA has updated their medical rules to eliminate the unwarranted and unfair psychological tests they required

With the new FAA change, the only thing required for a trans pilot is submitting current clinical records together with an evaluation from a psychiatrist or psychologist.  If they have any surgery a report is required as well.

Pilots in general are required to go through rigorous physical and psychological testing by the FAA for safety reasons and to get the medical certification they need to keep their pilots licenses.  But what was happening when pilots began to transition, they had been required to undergo expensive, burdensome and unnecessary batteries of psychological tests including personality, projective and intelligence tests in addition to the FAA required medical ones.    

The result was that some trans pilots wre grounded by their air carriers until they did so and others lost their jobs because of it.

I'm very happy to see the FAA finally go to a science-based criteria for trans pilots so that they can continue to not only keep their jobs but continue to serve the flying public.

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