Navy Flight School Q and A

[Snow]

Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

 

[NavyHoops]

Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

No need post in multiple forums.

 

[Usnavy2019]

Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

Not really. If you do OCS or PLC for the USMC as an Air Contract, you will get sent down as a civilian to NAMI in Pensacola. However, you have to be selected and you are considered an Officer Candidate (I.e. not a civilian as far as NAMI is concerned).

A couple things to keep in mind:

1. Your eyes have a reasonably high chance of changing between now and when it’s time to go to get selected for flight school.

2. The military only has the time, money, and resources to treat members of the military, retired military members, and those selected for/applying to military programs. They won’t see civilians off the street. Not only do they not have the time/money/resources, they also assume liability if they do. Flight docs are also specialists and it’s hard even as a flyer to get appointments with them.

The only possible way I can see you seeing a flight doc as a civilian is finding a doc who is a reservist flight surgeon. However, I have yet to see a doctor openly advertise their reserve status or offer “pre-screens.” I’m pretty sure doing so would be some type of conflict of interest, especially if said doc is collecting money for acting in their official capacity as a flight doc.

Also, the FAA Class 1 medical is sort of similar to what a flight physical is like, but don’t waste your time. FAA medical standards are different than military standards. There are conditions that are a no-go for the FAA, but waiverable in the military and vice versa.

 

[Herman_Snerd]

Snow said:
Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

So this conversation is happening across a couple of threads. Back in 2019, we paid for my son to have a class 1 flight physical/ battery of tests completed by a physician/ ophthalmologist / tech team who does these and often for the military. My son was lasered in on becoming a pilot and to serving as an officer. We didn't know if he would serve in aviation or SWO or NUC or whatever (needs of the service) but we knew he wanted to fly in and beyond the military, so on the advice of a USAF Brigadier General who is also a pilot and pilot for the airlines, we paid and had the test battery completed. We took the specs that the military uses with us, but the team laughed and said - um yeah, we know / we got this and line by line confirmed he was within standards. On both threads I see comments stating with seeming certainty / confidence that getting these tests completed by someone who does these for the military is impossible. Simply - No, it isn't. We did it in 2019 - you can do it to if you are willing to travel if needed and to pay for it and network to find one who will.

As others noted, eyes continue to grow/ change but it did help us rule out a bunch of potential DQs that would have been heartbreaking to learn after years of training to both be an officer and be a pilot. It was of great peace of mind - he was already a private pilot as a teen, but we then knew that many DQable conditions didn't exist at that time for him BEFORE he went off and trained to be a multi-engine commercial pilot/ cfi and before he served. It's been done, it's do-able/ Worth the cost if you can swing it.

 

[Usnavy2019]

Snow said:
Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

So this conversation is happening across a couple of threads. Back in 2019, we paid for my son to have a class 1 flight physical/ battery of tests completed by a physician/ ophthalmologist / tech team who does these and often for the military. My son was lasered in on becoming a pilot and to serving as an officer. We didn't know if he would serve in aviation or SWO or NUC or whatever (needs of the service) but we knew he wanted to fly in and beyond the military, so on the advice of a USAF Brigadier General who is also a pilot and pilot for the airlines, we paid and had the test battery completed. We took the specs that the military uses with us, but the team laughed and said - um yeah, we know / we got this and line by line confirmed he was within standards. On both threads I see comments stating with seeming certainty / confidence that getting these tests completed by someone who does these for the military is impossible. Simply - No, it isn't. We did it in 2019 - you can do it to if you are willing to travel if needed and to pay for it and network to find one who will.

As others noted, eyes continue to grow/ change but it did help us rule out a bunch of potential DQs that would have been heartbreaking to learn after years of training to both be an officer and be a pilot. It was of great peace of mind - he was already a private pilot as a teen, but we then knew that many DQable conditions didn't exist at that time for him BEFORE he went off and trained to be a multi-engine commercial pilot/ cfi and before he served. It's been done, it's do-able/ Worth the cost if you can swing it.

I think what people are saying (including me) is that you are not going to see a military healthcare professional. You can't just walk into the clinic. I don't get what they mean when they say "they do these all the time for the military." NAMI wouldn't let someone outside of the military do their flight physicals and issue medical clearances. My immunologist stated he was familiar with asthma waiver requirements since a lot of his patients were kids applying to SAs, but he never said he "did exams for the military." I'll definitely agree that it might provide some peace of mind, but things aren't official until you go to NAMI Actual at NAS Pensacola.

 

[Snow]

Snow said:
Does anyone know if I can get a Naval/Marine Officer flight surgeon to do my eye exam or even entire flight medical as a civilian before applying?

Trying to be a USMC Naval Aviator but don’t want to waste anyone’s time later if they miss something on a normal eye exam or somewhere in the medical exam.

So this conversation is happening across a couple of threads. Back in 2019, we paid for my son to have a class 1 flight physical/ battery of tests completed by a physician/ ophthalmologist / tech team who does these and often for the military. My son was lasered in on becoming a pilot and to serving as an officer. We didn't know if he would serve in aviation or SWO or NUC or whatever (needs of the service) but we knew he wanted to fly in and beyond the military, so on the advice of a USAF Brigadier General who is also a pilot and pilot for the airlines, we paid and had the test battery completed. We took the specs that the military uses with us, but the team laughed and said - um yeah, we know / we got this and line by line confirmed he was within standards. On both threads I see comments stating with seeming certainty / confidence that getting these tests completed by someone who does these for the military is impossible. Simply - No, it isn't. We did it in 2019 - you can do it to if you are willing to travel if needed and to pay for it and network to find one who will.

As others noted, eyes continue to grow/ change but it did help us rule out a bunch of potential DQs that would have been heartbreaking to learn after years of training to both be an officer and be a pilot. It was of great peace of mind - he was already a private pilot as a teen, but we then knew that many DQable conditions didn't exist at that time for him BEFORE he went off and trained to be a multi-engine commercial pilot/ cfi and before he served. It's been done, it's do-able/ Worth the cost if you can swing it.

Hey Herman, thanks for that. I think that shows you are willing to go extra miles yourself which is what I think the military wants from their people.

I think everyone means well when they don't think you can get it done by military health professionals (prior or not) because I do think it is difficult to find someone willing to do it. I also see it as you just have to be willing to try like you did. Yes, I risk years of training down the drain if I do it this way (even if I am cleared early on), but it's a risk I am willing to take. I think it has to mean that much to you and be willing to accept the DQs if they happen and end up serving and doing something else.

Would you mine messaging me and telling me more about the team that did this? I am willing to try to swing it. Much appreciated!

 

[Herman_Snerd]

Hey Herman, thanks for that. I think that shows you are willing to go extra miles yourself which is what I think the military wants from their people.

I think everyone means well when they don't think you can get it done by military health professionals (prior or not) because I do think it is difficult to find someone willing to do it. I also see it as you just have to be willing to try like you did. Yes, I risk years of training down the drain if I do it this way (even if I am cleared early on), but it's a risk I am willing to take. I think it has to mean that much to you and be willing to accept the DQs if they happen and end up serving and doing something else.

Would you mine messaging me and telling me more about the team that did this? I am willing to try to swing it. Much appreciated!

No worries - Private message sent. In that I provided the link to find FAA Medical examiners in your area, recommendations to cross-reference those names with those who have both private practices and who still complete these exams for the military (they exist, reservists included, as not all military members work only for the military full time), and outlined the path of contacting the base near you to confirm which physicians who complete these exams also may see civilians.

Further, we reaffirmed what other posters have said, which is that confirming you meet standards by a physician / ekg tech, audiology tech, and ophthalmologist now doesn't mean you will meet all standards/ pass an exam in the military in the future, but it can offer peace of mind that a qualified expert, who does these exams for the military, checked you out and didn't find a reason that would DQ you down the line (at this time). I agree with posters that point out (as I did) that any conclusion of these privately paid for tests matters not when that new Ensign/ 2nd Lt gets the official evalation at PNS or other location for other branches. But that's not the goal of the OP - the OP wants to have an exam to see up front if they have any DQ conditions presently.

I'm going mostly stay out of any debate where posters declares defiantly that no physician in the military will do these exams for civilians - for the record, simply - that is nonsense. reservists work in the military and some have privileges at hospitals/ private practices, see patients and yes know the standards and will (if you pay for it) put anyone interested through the series of exams/ evaluations as long as they have bandwidth/ are accepting new patients at this time - as I stated clearly, one of these physicians and their team did this for my son almost 5 years ago so it is possible. It was of great comfort before a great deal of money was spent for him training in a professional flight program to become a commercial pilot/ cfi and ultimately serve and to train to fly in the navy.

Good luck all.

 

[Snow]

No need post in multiple forums.

No worries - Private message sent. In that I provided the link to find FAA Medical examiners in your area, recommendations to cross-reference those names with those who have both private practices and who still complete these exams for the military (they exist, reservists included, as not all military members work only for the military full time), and outlined the path of contacting the base near you to confirm which physicians who complete these exams also may see civilians.

Further, we reaffirmed what other posters have said, which is that confirming you meet standards by a physician / ekg tech, audiology tech, and ophthalmologist now doesn't mean you will meet all standards/ pass an exam in the military in the future, but it can offer peace of mind that a qualified expert, who does these exams for the military, checked you out and didn't find a reason that would DQ you down the line (at this time). I agree with posters that point out (as I did) that any conclusion of these privately paid for tests matters not when that new Ensign/ 2nd Lt gets the official evalation at PNS or other location for other branches. But that's not the goal of the OP - the OP wants to have an exam to see up front if they have any DQ conditions presently.

I'm going mostly stay out of any debate where posters declares defiantly that no physician in the military will do these exams for civilians - for the record, simply - that is nonsense. reservists work in the military and some have privileges at hospitals/ private practices, see patients and yes know the standards and will (if you pay for it) put anyone interested through the series of exams/ evaluations as long as they have bandwidth/ are accepting new patients at this time - as I stated clearly, one of these physicians and their team did this for my son almost 5 years ago so it is possible. It was of great comfort before a great deal of money was spent for him training in a professional flight program to become a commercial pilot/ cfi and ultimately serve and to train to fly in the navy.

Good luck all.

Thank you. This is really good and extremely helpful. I am glad you went the distance and can say from experience. I think you have to be willing to do anything you can for this kind of thing. All the little steps add up. I sent a you a reply.

 

[av8torx]

Just curious does the USNA or USCGA have more aviation slots for graduates? Is the selection for aviation slots the at both academies? How competitive is it to get a pilot slot at the USNA and USCGA