Aeromedical Factors. 4 D D 35 Runway Safety Area for 4 Runway Safety Area for 35 35 4 Note: Because of the relative short Taxiway D stub, the hold markings.

Aeromedical Factors

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Note: Because of the relative short Taxiway D stub, the hold markings are not SEQUENCED in the “usual order” as one would expect to see exiting either runway.

Following landing, blue aircraft has been instructed to “hold short” Runway 4. Blue aircraft is expected to hold at this position even if the aircraft has not cleared the landing runway and remains inside the safety area for Runway 35. Follow ATC instructions.

Medical Certificate

• Must possess valid and appropriate medical certificate to exercise the privileges of your pilot certificate

Medical Certificate

• You are prohibited from performing crewmember duties while you have a known medical condition that would make you unable to meet the standards for your medical certificate

Personal Checklist• I - Illness

• M - Medication

• S - Stress

• A - Alcohol

• F - Fatigue

• E - Emotion or Eating

Hypoxia

• Name four types of hypoxia.

Hypoxia

• Hypoxic Hypoxia

• Hypemic Hypoxia

• Stagnant Hypoxia

• Histotoxic Hypoxia

Hypoxia

• Hypoxic Hypoxia - Inadequate supply of oxygen - altitude

• Hypemic Hypoxia - Inability of the blood to carry oxygen - Smoking - CO

Hypoxia

• Stagnant Hypoxia - Inadequate circulation of oxygen - Heart problems - shock

• Histotoxic Hypoxia - Inability of the cells to effectively use oxygen - alcohol - drugs

Symptoms

• Headache, drowsiness, dizziness and either a sense of well-being or belligerence

• Periphery of the visual field turns gray

Symptoms

• Blue color in lips and fingernails

• Unconsciousness

• Death

Hyperventilation

• Abnormal increase in the amount of air breathed in and out flushes from the lungs and blood much of the carbon dioxide needed to maintain the proper degree of blood acidity

Hyperventilation

• Control breathing - breath into a paper bag - talking, singing or counting aloud

Symptoms• Dizziness, tingling of the fingers

and toes, hot and cold sensations, drowsiness, nausea and suffocation

• Disorientation and painful muscle spasms, followed by unconsciousness

Carbon Monoxide• Colorless, odorless and tasteless

gas

• Affinity of the hemoglobin in the blood is greater for carbon monoxide than oxygen

• Effects are cumulative

Carbon Monoxide

• Susceptibility increases with altitude

• Aircraft heater work by air flowing over the exhaust manifold

Symptoms• Feeling of sluggishness, being

too warm and tightness across the forehead

• Followed by headache, throbbing or pressure in the temples and ringing in the ears

Symptoms

• Leads to severe headache, weakness, dizziness and dimming of vision

• Loss of muscle power, vomiting, coma, death

Decompression Sickness

• Nitrogen changes from a liquid to a gas and forms bubbles in the bloodstream

• Wait at least 12 hours after a dive not requiring a controlled ascent

Decompression Sickness

• Wait at least 24 hours after a dive requiring a controlled ascent

Motion Sickness

• Caused by continued stimulation of the tiny portion of the inner ear that control your sense of balance

Symptoms• Desire for food is lost

• Saliva collects in your mouth and you perspire freely

• Nausea and disorientation

• Headache and tendency to vomit

Preventive Measure

• Open air vents

• Loosen clothing

• Supplemental oxygen, if available

• Look outside the airplane

Preventive Measure

• Avoid unnecessary head movement

• Land as soon as possible

Motion Sickness

• As a pilot do not take over the counter medication, since they can cause deterioration of navigation skills and tasks requiring keen judgment

Sinus Block• Air pressure not able to equalize

between the sinuses and the nasal passage

• Caused by respiratory infection or nasal allergies producing congestion

• Usually occurs during descent

Symptoms• Excruciating pain in frontal sinuses

above each eyebrow or in the maxillary sinuses located in each upper cheek which may make the upper teeth ache

• Bloody mucus may discharge from the nasal passages

Ear Block

• Air pressure not able to equalize between the ears and the nasal passage by way of the Eustachian tubes

• Caused by upper respiratory infection

Ear Block

• Swallowing, yawning, using Valsalva maneuver

Symptoms• Severe ear pain and loss of

hearing

• Rupture of the ear drum

• Fluid accumulation in the middle ear which can become infected

Stress

• Life Stress Management–Be knowledgeable about stress

–Take a realistic assessment of yourself

–Take a systematic approach to problem solving

Stress–Develop a life style that will buffer

you from the effects of stress

–Practice behavioral management techniques

–Establish and maintain a strong support network

Stress

• Cockpit Stress Management–Avoid situations that distract you

from flying the aircraft

–Reduce your workload

–In an emergency, remain calm

Stress–Maintain proficiency in your

aircraft

–Know and respect your personal limitations

–Do not let little things bother you until they build into big things

Stress

• Cockpit Stress Management–If flying is adding to your stress,

either stop flying or seek professional help to manage your stress within acceptable limits

Illusions

• Can lead to spatial disorientation

• Can lead to landing errors

• Often contribute to fatal aircraft accidents

Illusions• Leans - Correcting a banked

attitude which has been entered too slowly to stimulate the motion sensing system in the inner ear

• Creates the illusion of banking in the opposite direction

Illusions

• Coriolis Illusion - An abrupt head movement in a prolonged constant-rate turn can create the illusion of rotation or movement in an entirely different axis

Illusions

• Graveyard spin - recovery from a spin and create the illusion of spinning in the opposite direction. The disoriented pilot returns the aircraft to its original spin

Illusions• Graveyard spiral - Losing altitude in a

constant rate turn. creates the illusion of being in a descent with the wings level

• The disoriented pilot will pull back on the controls, tightening the spiral and increasing loss of altitude

Illusions• Somatogravic illusion - Rapid

acceleration during takeoff can create the illusion of being in a nose-up attitude

• The disoriented pilot will push the aircraft into a nose-low or dive attitude

Illusions• Inversion illusion - an abrupt change

from climb to straight and level flight can create the illusion of tumbling backwards

• The disoriented pilot will push the aircraft into a nose-low attitude, possibly intensifying this illusion

Illusions• Elevator illusion - An abrupt

upward vertical acceleration caused by an updraft can create the illusion of being in a climb

• The disoriented pilot will push the aircraft into a nose-low attitude

Illusions• False Horizon - Sloping cloud

formations, an obscured horizon and some patterns of ground lights can create the illusion of not being aligned correctly with the actual horizon

• Leads to a dangerous attitude

Illusions• Autokinesis - In the dark, a static

light will appear to move about when stared at for several seconds

• The disoriented pilot will lose control of the aircraft in attempting to align it with the light

Illusions

• Size-distance illusion - When one stares at a point of light, it may appear to approach or recede rapidly

Illusions

• Reversible perspective - At night, an aircraft may appear to be going away from you when it is actually approaching

Illusions• Flicker vertigo - A flickering light at a

constant frequency may cause dizziness, nausea and in extreme cases convulsions and unconsciousness

• Sun shining in the propeller on approach

• Change in power can help

Illusions

Leading to Landing Errors

Illusions• Runway width illusions - A

wider-than-normal runway creates the illusion that the aircraft is lower than it really is

• Pilots level out too high and land hard or overshoots the runway

Illusions

• Runway and Terrain Slopes illusion - An upsloping runway creates the illusion that the aircraft is higher than it really is

• The pilot will fly a low approach

Illusions• Featureless Terrain illusion -

Absence of ground features when landing over water, snow or dark areas creates the illusion that the aircraft is higher than it actually is

• The pilot will fly a low approach

Illusions• Atmospheric illusion - Rain on the

windscreen can create the illusion of greater height. Haze creates the illusion of being at a greater distance. Penetration of fog can create the illusion of pitching up.

Illusions

• Ground lighting illusion - Lights along a straight path, such as a road can be mistaken for runway lights

• Bright runway lights and approach light systems can create the illusion of less distance to the runway.

Vision

• Vision is the most important sense for safe flight.

• Daytime scanning - series of short, regularly spaced eye movements not to exceed 10o observed for at least one second

Vision

• Night time - use offset viewing and scan slowly

• Avoid bright lights for at least 30 minutes prior to flight

Vision

• How is the eye constructed?

Vision• Cones

• Rods

• Fovea

• Off Center viewing

• Adaptation

• Oxygen