8 ms·
This case infuriates me. At the time, I had just finished sending in an appeal to being denied a medical clearance to become a pilot because of a history of cl
by gavinhoward 3y ago
This case infuriates me.
At the time, I had just finished sending in an appeal to being denied a medical clearance to become a pilot because of a history of clinical depression.
That appeal required undergoing a battery of tests, a psychological evaluation, multiple meetings with a therapist and a report from the same, and 15 hours of flight instruction plus a report of my performance by the flight instructors.
I intended to be professional. Everyone thought I was safe to fly.
I nevertheless thought the FAA would deny my appeal. I was right. [1]
So because I once had clinical depression, I can't get a medical. And yet, yahoos like this get to fly simply because stupidity and malice isn't as well-documented as a history of mental illness. Sigh...
To be clear, I don't think the FAA is at fault here; they didn't know, and they acted fast once he did it. They did a great job.
I just wish they would let me fly.
[1]: https://gavinhoward.com/2022/09/grounded-for-life-losing-the-dream-of-flight/ https://gavinhoward.com/2022/09/grounded-for-life-losing-the...
- latchkey 3y agoIs flying in the US your only option?
- gavinhoward 3y agoNow that I have a history with the FAA, I probably couldn't fly international. I also have a wife. I can't just pack up and move to a different country. When the rejection came, I decided my marriage was worth more than flying.
- latchkey 3y agoYea, I read your post. Having now lived outside of the US for a period of time, I've come to the grand realization that the US is one of the least 'free' countries out there (and I moved to a communist country!). My guess is that if you really wanted to find a way to fly, you could, and it wouldn't require moving. If there is a will, there is a way.
- gavinhoward 3y agoI have a moral code that is against bribery.
- Saigonautica 3y agoI was able to immigrate to Vietnam and set myself up without bribery. I've been here 10 years. Mainly it was a matter of learning how to do the paperwork properly. Some people here pay bribes, others refuse to. I won't claim everything here is magically ideal, but as a general rule if you don't put yourself in situations where you need to pay bribes, you won't have to pay them. Mostly simple things like getting a driver's license if you're going to drive, maintaining your vehicle, and registering your current address. Foreign residents here do have a bit of a reputation for poor compliance on stuff like this and doing everything the shadiest, laziest, and most fragile way possible. This situation has improved in recent years -- I currently know maybe 4 or 5 other legal immigrants. We are a minority -- your assumptions about the behavior of the average person who moves here from North America are not entirely without merit, it's just not a universal truth. Anyway I don't mean to argue with you -- just provide a hopefully interesting slice of life from a different part of the world.
- gavinhoward 3y agoThese are fair points, thank you.
- latchkey 3y agoHa! I moved to Vietnam as well. (in Oct 2016). Only back in the US because I was locked out during covid and ended up changing all my plans and making things work here for now. I love the ability to just pay the cops off, it is the best corruption ever. Who wants to go to court when you can just settle the matter right then and there for a few bucks. I also have a totally valid drivers license (A2) with my picture super imposed on someone else's head. I'm curious, how did you immigrate there?
- latchkey 3y agoI don't know what that has to do with things here though. I bet you could go to somewhere like, Mexico (or another country down there), and easily hire someone to let you fly a plane.
- insomagent 3y agoThat is a good reason to forever hide your mental illnesses, which mean they will never get treated. Stupid policy.
- gavinhoward 3y agoI agree. I was even willing to agree to regular appointments with a therapist who could ground me at any time for any reason. But no. I was punished for being honest.
- alex_lav 3y agoWell...the honesty and potentially the vaguely threatening and somewhat religious-extremist nature of your posts, right?
- gavinhoward 3y agoRead the rest of the thread. My beliefs include strong loyalty to the current government. See D&C 134:5.
- alex_lav 3y agoI understand that, but that fact does not change the existence of the other content or its ability to be misperceived or taken out of context.
- gavinhoward 3y agoThere was nothing threatening about what I said, at least not intended. That is the entire point of everything else I wrote in this thread. Yes, I worded things very poorly. I'm famous for doing that. But I attempted to fix those problems after people have criticized me in this thread.
- insomagent 3y ago
- insomagent 3y agoI don't know man, maybe you should remove some of these posts next time you apply: https://gavinhoward.com/2020/10/the-next-great-project-zion/ https://gavinhoward.com/2020/10/the-next-great-project-zion/ (This one jumped out to me in particular.) https://gavinhoward.com/2022/08/the-nature-of-heaven-what-i-learned-from-my-first-animes/ https://gavinhoward.com/2022/08/the-nature-of-heaven-what-i-... https://gavinhoward.com/2021/07/the-next-free-nation/ https://gavinhoward.com/2021/07/the-next-free-nation/ https://gavinhoward.com/2021/06/israel-is-not-an-apartheid-state/ https://gavinhoward.com/2021/06/israel-is-not-an-apartheid-s... https://gavinhoward.com/2020/07/political-slavery/ https://gavinhoward.com/2020/07/political-slavery/ These posts you've been making might have more of an influence on your application than your medical history, bro. edit: In this post: https://gavinhoward.com/2021/07/the-next-free-nation/ https://gavinhoward.com/2021/07/the-next-free-nation/ You stated ..."So the United States must die. But what will rise in its place will be even greater: Zion." Bro, I would NOT want you flying my plane after reading that.
- light_hue_1 3y ago[flagged]
- gavinhoward 3y agoIf being religious makes me a nutjob, I'll take that label because it makes it meaningless.
- sgt 3y ago[flagged]
- gavinhoward 3y agoOkay, what outside of being religious makes me a nutjob?
- dang 3y agoPlease don't call names, do personal attacks and/or feed flamewars on HN. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- shipscode 3y agoUnfortunately in today’s day and age any mental illness is a scarlet letter on your record when it comes to anything government related. Firearm licenses in antigun states are probably the most egregious. It’s especially troubling with the hype surrounding “mental illness” or “neurodiversity” and popularization of it amongst the youth. It seems to be creating a nation of prohibited persons and second class citizens.
- jopolous 3y agoFly under sport pilot privileges. All you need is a drivers license. Reach out to West Desert Aviators in Utah. Several young people in tech fly there. If you can find LSA to fly, light sport isn’t as restrictive of a license as it’s made out to be and you don’t have to live in fear of the FAA yanking your medical
- gavinhoward 3y agoThat is a good point. I guess I was so discouraged because I wanted to become a professional helicopter pilot, for which I needed a first-class medical.
- ThePowerOfFuet 3y agohttps://admiralcloudberg.medium.com/the-madness-in-our-methods-the-crash-of-germanwings-flight-9525-and-our-broken-aeromedical-system-5b95abd4fe6d https://admiralcloudberg.medium.com/the-madness-in-our-metho... HN discussion at the time: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35755630 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35755630