Colour bind, Failed the CAD test, only a 13yo please help.

[ols500 43]

Hello I am 13 years old and I'm very interested in becoming a pilot which gets paid, so flying passengers, cargo etc... However, I am colour blind so I do not know If I can become a pilot. I paid for the proper CAD test in the UK and scored 18.6 (6 or less to pass) and sometimes worry It was just a bad day and could of scored nearer to 6. Even though, I failed I am not giving up and am willing to fly anywhere in the world as a "commercial" pilot. The lady who tested me on the CAD said I am allowed to get a PPL (I can fly non-paying passengers in Cessna etc...) which was the only good news from that day. Is there any hope that I can fly or take a different test, hope to get some answers soon and hope I get some positive answers, because so far all I have heard is 'maybe' or 'wait a few years, things might change'.

-Many thanks in advance Ollie Seaward.

[hjsmuc 393]

Not an expert on this, so no half hearted advice on the tests. Some others with knowledge will chime in. But stay focused on what you want to do and you will get closer to your dream. It's great to see a young man with a focus. 

[awreaper 14]

It is unusual to see a young man of your age already know exactly what he wants to do and has a plan.  When I was a young man I dreamed of flying fighter jets in the military.  My eyes were bad and I couldn't pass the test to do so.  I ended up going in the military but as another specialty.  I was upset of course, but life doesn't always take you exactly where you want to go.  I did end up getting my PPL some years later and really don't fly much except on the sim.  Life is funny like that.  Good luck with your dreams but always have a plan B and never stop trying, no matter how many times you may get knocked down. :)

[ckyliu 1,749]

Wherever you go you will need to meet the ICAO standards:

Quote

Individuals who fail to achieve an adequate score in this [pseudoisochromatic plates] test can nevertheless be accepted for licensing if they can "readily distinguish the colours used in air navigation and correctly identify aviation coloured lights". Depending on the country in which the application is made, this secondary test may take the form of a device (called a "lantern") that requires an applicant to identify different coloured lights e.g. red, green and white and sometimes, depending on the exact lantern type, additional colours. There are other tests becoming available that make use computer technology for assessing colour vision. As different countries apply different tests it is necessary to inquire of a particular Licensing Authority the details of the test it employs.

Excerpt from https://www.icao.int/safety/aviation-medicine/Pages/medFAQ_en.aspx#anchor03 , there is further detail at https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/8984_cons_en.pdf p372-377

I don't think resitting the CAD test is going to improve your performance much as "the procedures employed to measure chromatic detection thresholds allow for a certain amount of indecision and lapses in subject's concentration" according to http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/docs/33/Paper 2006_04.pdf , you may find p101 useful as it goes over the various secondary colour tests used in different countries and elsewhere it describes them in detail.

Note the UK CAA does not offer an alternative to CAD but http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/modalapplication.aspx?appid=11&mode=detail&id=3560 p65 specifically mentions the USA FAA as being a lot less stringent than UK CAA, JAA and EASA because they'll accept results from 10+ other tests, but given how you scored on CAD is it likely you'd pass any test to a commercial standard?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, I hope the information above will help you :)

 

 

[kenz 33]

it was the same for me, failed the ishiara test, the lanterne test etc...

when I understood I coul'd never be a professionnal pilot I have made a mistake : I choose to make studies in a complete different sector.

 

try not to make this mistake, pilot is not the only career in aviation, you could become dispatcher, loadmaster, mechanichs, engineer etc...and be in/arround planes daily

[DavidP 1,408]

Best advice I could give as a Commercial Pilot/Instructor is to get advice from an Aviation Medical Examiner. While well meaning, the Avsim forums are not the best place to ask.

[LRBS 943]

Dear Ollie,

At my company (flying 747s) we have two Captains colour blinded with Class ONE Medical, my suggestion would be if by any chance you would go on a vacation in US have an appointment with a private  FAA Doctor and take the exam (will not cost you more than $ 100), at least you will know exactly what is all about. I'm holding Class one medical as well under the FAA rules but when I had ICAO (UK) medical ( the eye exam) was the same without any fuss.

As David Porrett was advising, I strongly suggest have an appointment with a  airline professional medical examiner in your country for a preliminary medical evaluation.

Good luck and hope to hear good news.

Best regards,

Alex

 

[auburntsts 1]

As others have said, it is possible, at least in the US, but best to get professional medial advice and not rely on forum advice unless the poster is a respected AME.  I suggest checking out Aircraft owners and Pilots Organization (AOPA), http://www.aopa.org/.  They have a wealth of info on becoming a pilot.  AOPA also allows you to post to their forums in the medical section anonymously and without having to be a AOPA member. Pilots of America, https://www.pilotsofamerica.com/, is also a good site to check out for all things aviation related. Good luck!

[harrry 322]

You may be able to, Australia permits color blindness in most conditions.

You have to get your innformation from real sources though not AVSIM much as people may want to help you.

I would say study as hard as you can at school, obviously it is the maths and physics subjects that will help you most. That leaves you with options.  Most employers need a degree, do that as well as you can while investigating aviation options,  They may be being a pilot but there are other options like dispatchers and even radio and other engineering jobs with an aviation focus,  Even meteorology for those of us who like to be always wrong,

Keep your dream but remember you may have to adapt it.

[ols500 43]

Wow, I stunned how many people there are like me out there with all this advice! It's so hard to try every day in school and know that I might be working for something, which is physically impossible, however after these suggestions

10 hours ago, killthespam said:

FAA Doctor and take the exam (will not cost you more than $ 100)

 

and

On 1/24/2018 at 8:44 PM, ckyliu said:

Note the UK CAA does not offer an alternative to CAD but http://publicapps.caa.co.uk/modalapplication.aspx?appid=11&mode=detail&id=3560 p65 specifically mentions the USA FAA as being a lot less stringent than UK CAA, JAA and EASA because they'll accept results from 10+ other tests, but given how you scored on CAD is it likely you'd pass any test to a commercial standard?

I will not got give up and always look for a different way forward. However, it is still so tough knowing you are working towards something that might never come true. I'm sure you guys know what i'm talking about, like every day you dream about just one definitive answer of 'yes, you can fly commercially!' but it seems to never come to you... 

 

Also, why can't they just stick us colour blind people into a full-size sim with a real pilot and see if we can see the runway lights clearly, the different colored buttons etc... why do some weird number test and how on Earth is a different colored square moving across a screen used in aviation (the CAD test). If anyone knows these answers, please inform me :)

[ols500 43]

Plus @ckyliu

You said 

On 1/24/2018 at 8:44 PM, ckyliu said:

but given how you scored on CAD is it likely you'd pass any test to a commercial standard?

I got 18.6

I need 6< to pass

I failed by 3 times the legal limit, how would I pass a different test? Are they much easier?

[ckyliu 1,749]

That was my point; you could spend much time and money trying to get a pass on some other test somewhere but if you've failed CAD by 3x the limit I'm doubtful (in my personal and uninformed opinion only) you could pass any, sorry. 

The links I posted previously go in to some detail about why CAD was adopted by the UK CAA and it's relevance to aviation, although some is couched in fairly technical language.

[harrry 322]

Australia uses if needed a test which is supposed to be based on real use.  The problem though though is the licence does have an endorsement and outside Australia and internationally itmay have problems.

There is a very long serious of posts on www.prune.org where CASA started failing people for not passing color tests.  It seems to have settled now...after a couple of people rather suddenly left them.  The ability for people to get licences in Australia was as a result of a Disabilities Discrimination case where the authorities were not able to show that it made any difference to safety.

[TomS03 0]

Sorry to dig up an old(ish) thread, just wondered how you're getting on, ols500? Although much older, and in a different sector of work, I sometimes wonder how my luck would go with getting through the ATC medical, being red-green colour deficient!

[birdguy 3,943]

Ollie, there are a number of color tests on the internet that you can take.  Try a few of them and see how you do.  If you fail most of them then you are probably going to have to find another career in aviation.  But if you do well on some of them you may have a chance.

I wanted to be an Air Force pilot but myopia get in the way of that.  I became an electronic technician and later a weather forecaster so at least I was around airplanes and the aviation community.  At one time I was an instrumentation technician and flew in the back seat of F-100s and B-57s testing air munitions.

Later I did become a private pilot and eventually got a commercial rating but I never flew commercially.

Noel