If you *need* to take antidepressants *during* my flight, I like to know about it before I board...... Good Lord, what are these people thinking? Or not thinking?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100402/ap_on_bi_ge/us_pilots_antidepressants_5
FAA: Pilots allowed to take antidepressants on job
by Sam Whiskey 13 Replies latest jw friends
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serenitynow!
What exactly are you concerned about? Just because a person is depressed and seeking treatment does not mean the person is suicidal or wishes to harm others. It's the people with mood disorders who refuse to seek help that you should be concerned about. BTW, when you are on anti depressants it is not on an as needed basis, the pilot would be taking meds daily.
Depression is common and very treatable. Now if the pilot is on meds for say, paranoid schizophrenia, that is another story altogether.
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JWoods
Do you have a link to this?
When I was active as a private pilot FAA warnings were regularly given out about such things as sinus or cold medicines.
The annual medical certificate asked about psychological questions which should uncover things like depression.
A lot of those antidepressants advertised on TV warn about stuff like "thoughts of suicide" and such.
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av8orntexas
I do not personally know of any taking any . That said, given the rigorous physical, recurrent, and proficiency exams all pilots go through........
I'll take my chances with the guys up front. Most people can't change lanes with banging up another car.
Pilots need to process information, and make a sound, and deliberate decision with no-second guessing. Turning a 757 for finals into Boston with high wind gusts, frozen precip, low visibility...basically ILS conditions is alot harder than making a u-turn in your Camry on wet roads.
Airlines now, make little to no money and there is pressure to get people home, on vacation,to meetings and help the bottom line.
Flying can be and is stressfull. The commercial pilot community as a whole is very good at self-policing themself. Most pilots can declare themseves 'unfit' to fly. ( stress, fatigue, or some simply time-out...over FAA duty time, etc ) Sam Whiskey, I wouldn't worry about your next flight.
But........the FAA and airlines need to do more to help pilots. Today, most are being pushed to their limit, and the up and coming pilots from the regionals do scare me,no fault of their own. It's the safest aviation system in the world ( US ) but more needs to be done to improve it and keep it that way.
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av8orntexas
I do not personally know of any taking any . That said, given the rigorous physical, recurrent, and proficiency exams all pilots go through........
I'll take my chances with the guys up front. Most people can't change lanes with banging up another car.
Pilots need to process information, and make a sound, and deliberate decision with no-second guessing. Turning a 757 for finals into Boston with high wind gusts, frozen precip, low visibility...basically ILS conditions is alot harder than making a u-turn in your Camry on wet roads.
Airlines now, make little to no money and there is pressure to get people home, on vacation,to meetings and help the bottom line.
Flying can be and is stressfull. The commercial pilot community as a whole is very good at self-policing themself. Most pilots can declare themseves 'unfit' to fly. ( stress, fatigue, or some simply time-out...over FAA duty time, etc ) Sam Whiskey, I wouldn't worry about your next flight.
But........the FAA and airlines need to do more to help pilots. Today, most are being pushed to their limit, and the up and coming pilots from the regionals do scare me,no fault of their own. It's the safest aviation system in the world ( US ) but more needs to be done to improve it and keep it that way.
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under the radar
I know it sounds preposterous, but it's really not, if you read the whole proposal. I happen to be a commercial airline pilot, and I would have no problem flying with another pilot who had been cleared to fly after taking this kind of medication. They have to have been on it for a whole year with no side effects that could affect aviation safety. If you've been taking something for a whole year with no appreciable side effects, the chances of something untoward suddenly springing up is pretty much nil.
Pilots are people just like everyone else (albeit with very good jobs), and as a group generally have the same problems in the same proportions as the general population. Fortunately, there are several levels of safeguards to detect individuals with medical, emotional, or mental issues that must be addressed before they can return to flying. No pilot in his right mind would knowingly fly with another pilot who was impaired in ANY way. To do so would be a career decision, if you get my drift. There are several ways a pilot could avoid this without being a "narc," and still get his fellow aviator the help he or she needs. The public may not be aware of all this behind the scenes business, but believe me, all professional crewmembers are. Their jobs depend on it.
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Snoozy
A scary story. My daughter used to be a airline hostess for TWA. She recently met up with a guy she used to know when flying (on facebook)and he is still a pilot.
So since she is(or was) a friend of his I could read his wall. All he does is talk about drinking and partying. He is in his 50's now so I guess he has been doing this for many years. All his pictures show him in a bar or at a friends place with booze in his hand . I think this is the norm rather than the unusual.
If someone needs pills to cope with life then they have no business flying and taking everyone elses life in their hands. I feel it would effect them one way or another. What if he forgets his pills or doesn't take them?
Snoozy..who would NOT go up in a plane with a pilot that had been drinking all night or taking pills for anxiety.
I don't think pilots would rat on each other any more than a cop would!!!!!!!
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JWoods
Many (if not most) pilots do indeed drink - but I have known very few who actually flew a plane with alcohol in their systems.
I found the link - and yes, it is sort of an amnesty program for pilots who took Prozac or such in secrecy in the past.
I am a little reluctant to just give this a writeoff: after all, these things are mental-state drugs, if not actually mind altering. That is their stated purpose. Not so sure this is a good thing in the cockpit.
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BurnTheShips
If this just means most SSRIs and SNRIs, I fail to see what the problem is.
BTS
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Broken Promises
I would rather the pilot to be taking anti-depressants than not taking them.
Unfortunately there is a lot of misinformation about people who have depression. Many can be successfully treated with anti-depressants and they can go on to enjoy productive lives.
There’s no difference between a pilot taking medication for depression and a pilot taking medication for asthma. Both are conditions which can be treated with modern medicine.