NROTC and PRK

[Daisy]

When is an ideal time in college to schedule PRK to allow for a waiver to be reviewed before applying to Aviation Training? My son is NROTC.

I'm asking because my good friend's husband is an ophthalmologist (but I bet we still won't get a fee break) who will probably do the surgery. He asked about the timing.

Christmas break junior year, summer after junior year - before or after senior cruise, or Christmas break senior year?

The Doc is concerned about the followup care as son's school is far from home.

Thanks!

 

[MIDNJAC]

A friend of mine did it Christmas break of our junior year and things worked out fine. Only problem was that his eyes still hadn't stabilized in time for him to go med up for senior cruise (which would have been aviation for him). So he went on a sub cruise, and got picked up for pilot a couple months later during our senior year. He's happily flying helos now in the HT's.

It would be possible for it to work out later than this, but I would really not recommend waiting much longer than Christmas-time of junior year. Service selection packets generally go out in early October of senior year, and the student needs to be medically qualified for SNA/SNFO by that date. Summertime would likely be too late, since the earliest a doc can even see a PRK candidate is 3 months following the surgery.

 

[nugget61]

...The Doc is concerned about the followup care as son's school is far from home. Thanks!

You really only need to go to the surgeon's place for ~1 week (till the bandage contacts are removed). Beyond that they only do standard refraction/slit lamp/etc tests that he should be able to get done at school.

 

[SlickAg]

Service selection packets generally go out in early October of senior year, and the student needs to be medically qualified for SNA/SNFO by that date. Summertime would likely be too late, since the earliest a doc can even see a PRK candidate is 3 months following the surgery.

I got my SNA slot on a Tuesday, and had my flight physical on that Friday. Now, if I had been NPQ'ed, they probably would've forced me to go NFO, which would've sucked since it wasn't my second choice. But you can get selected for it without the flight physical.

I was in the same spot as your friend, had it done X-mas break my junior year and couldn't get an aviation first-class cruise. But I was an early grad so the packets went out in July.

 

[MIDNJAC]

I got my SNA slot on a Tuesday, and had my flight physical on that Friday. Now, if I had been NPQ'ed, they probably would've forced me to go NFO, which would've sucked since it wasn't my second choice. But you can get selected for it without the flight physical.

Yeah I remember this happening to another friend of mine, and it was a unique situation. She ended up being unlucky, and being NPQ from any officer community on top of getting the boot from aviation. My point is that generally speaking you need to be PQ around the time you select, and pushing that date is unwise.