Colorblindness Issue...

evilleramsfan

evilleramsfan

5-Year Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2011
Messages
148
Well, it looks like my son's chances at USNA will go by the wayside... A slight colorblindness issue was discovered with his medical. He could see red and green dots, but had troubles seeing the pattern they made. He is not fully colorblind, though... You can mix up red and green markers all day long and he could name the color every time. He got a qualified status for USAFA, and a remedial test was required for Navy (FALANT). He took it this morning and failed. The frustrating thing is that after looking at the form, in all three tries he only missed a total of two where there was an actual difference in color. He missed 6 when the lights were the supposed to be the same. Something about this doesn't add up for me. He was flawless with R/G or G/R out of 6 tries. He was 5/6 with W/G or G/W and 5/6 with W/R or R/W. Yes, I realize most of my frustration comes from seeing him mad and disappointed. Sorry, but I just had to vent.....

(To compound matters, our MOC liason had asked him to pick one academy for a nomination so they could keep another slot open in case it was needed. He was split on the two, so I suggested Navy because he was interested in Mechanical Engineering. Knowing that Navy dealt in multiple types of propulsion systems, it seemed to be the stronger choice of the two for ME, so that one was selected. We have just notified the MOC to let them know. I doubt at this point they can do anything about it, but it couldn't hurt.)

:frown:
 
Color vision is one of the most frustrating things for those looking into the sea services or aviation. Definitely tough and frustrating to go through.
 
I was in the same position as your son and it is one of the most frustrating things I have ever dealt with. If it is too late for them to change the nomination don't give up hope yet. The Supe chooses several color blind candidates that are deemed qualified every year at the end of the cycle to recieve a waiver. It's still possible.
 
"Several" is misleading compared to the number of the incoming class. It is indeed very few and they always have special and unique capabilities that they bring to the table. But yes, it is possible:thumb:
 
Thanks for the encouragement....

We will keep pressing onward and see what happens. I called an Opthomologist who administers FALANT tests locally for Pilot Medicals to ask some questions and he told me that missing the same color but doing well on different colors is common for colorblind individuals. He has another piece of equipment that examines the abilities or deficiencies of the cones within the retina and makes a more detailed determination of the degree and type of colorblindness. We intend on having him examined so we know what his abilities and limitations are.... It is something that could affect him in the future, so it is best for him to know what to expect.
 
Roger. Undersatnd that the Sea Services will ONLY accept the FALANT results for review for someone who does NOT meet standards on the PIP test. Good luck:thumb:
 
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