The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) plans to establish a Pilot Mental Health Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) to identify methods of eliminating obstacles that prevent pilots from reporting mental health issues.
Currently, pilots are required to report some mental health conditions to their aviation medical examiners, who determine whether the pilots meet aeromedical fitness requirements.
“Mental health care has made great strides in recent years, and we want to make sure the FAA is considering those advances when we evaluate the health of pilots,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said.
The ARC will be made up of medical experts and representatives of the aviation industry, including labor.
The FAA said that it has taken several steps in recent years to prioritize pilot mental health, including, increasing mental health training for aeromedical examiners, supporting research and clinical studies on pilot mental health and increasing o…
