Considering NFO option...

[ASUPilot]

Hello everyone. It's Hayden, aka ASUPilot. I was originally selected for OCS as a SNA candidate. I was supposed to start OCS 5 August. Well, about 2.5 weeks ago I was down in Pcola as part of the ACES program where I was administered my flight physical. Needless to say this time around I got NOMI WHAMMIED! I can't really articulate with words why I want to be in the Navy so badly, I just do. Currently I am a pilot so the natural thought was to join the Navy and go fly. For now, my eyes are just BARELY out of limits...I was cleared on EVERY other aspect of the physical. I could attend OCS as a SNFO. Being NPQ'd for SNA broke my heart, but I still really want to serve as an Officer in the Navy. Could anyone please shed a little light on a venture I just may take afterall? Also, I would appreciate it if someone could supply some gouge on the "NFO to Pilot" program. I know I'm rambling here but I do have a serious decision to make within a short period of time. The gravity of this decision is understood by me but I would like some additional information on the NFO program. Thanks in advance.

 

[webmaster]

Hayden, I feel your pain. When I went through API last year, one of my friends I went to college with also got whammied on his eye exam. He was just barely out of limits on his eyes also. Probably because he was so close, he convinced them to give him another eye exam at the end of API, based on those results would determine whether or not he would go SNFO or SNA. For the next 6 weeks he did everything he could not to strain his eyes, from not watching TV going to the movies, keeping well hydrated, to the night before breathing O2 and oxygenating his eyes. Granted he went to extremes, and while we as friends joked with him (we were all still routing him on), he did pass the final eye exam with flying colors.

Another friend of mine that I am in Advanced with, went through OCS as an SNFO, and changed over to SNA. I'll give him a call today and see what he had to do to get that changed over. So, I guess to sum it up, if you were that close, you might want to try and take it again while you are in Pensacola during API, it is just the mechanics/paperwork of doing it that I am unaware of, though more than likely it is just getting permission from NASC, the people that run API, and the student control officer there to go over and take it again.

Also, are you still starting on 5 August, or did it get pushed back? It sounds like a number of people on this forum are off to OCS and then API very shortly. All the best, and tell us what you find out.

 

[ASUPilot]

John, I thank you for youe kind words. I am still so upset by this. I am not going to the 5 August OCS class now. Three things happened to me during the NOMI thing that NPQ'd me. First off, they called my 20/30 -2 in my right eye. I needed 20/30 -0 to pass. My left eye was fine and I know that since I had no sleep that's why my right eye was performing poorly. I know I can pass that. Second, I missed two of the depth perception deals...one must miss 0 to pass. I know I can get that also because it's a game. My first time through that depth test I got 3 out of 8...then I got 4 out of 8, and finally got 6 out of 8. My view on this issue is that I can pass if I get another shot because I was learning how to see those circles. It was like relaxing your eyes to look at one of those funny pictures at the mall with the hidden images. Thirdly, I have a pterygium in my left eye. This thing is a small 1.2mm tissue build up on my eye. I am from Arizona and it is a fairly common condition out west where we are exposed to so much sunlight. My pterygium is not progressive, is stable, and is not encroaching on my cornea, so the damn thing does not effect my visual acuity AT ALL. However, a pterygium is completely disqualifying for SNA and SNFO. As soon as I returned to Phoenix I had several consultations with an eye surgeon. He then wrote an extremely detailed letter to the Navy for their review at the Bureau of Medicine. The Navy now must decide whether or not the procedure I need to remove the pterygium is in itself acceptable. Hopefully I will hear back within two weeks; I sent it off early last week. Then I believe I must wait 90 days post-op to ensure that no signs of recurrence exist. I may or maynot have to wait this amount of time...it's up to the Bureau of Medicine. With my luck I'll have to. Assumming I'm cleared for the procedure and it goes well, I'll head back down to Pcola for an eye retest. If I can't get to SNA standards, I know I'll make SNFO standards. Then I'll probably get OCS orders. Since I was originally in the 5 August OCS class I am stil packed and ready to go. I guess I'll take this time and continue to mentally, emotionally, and physically prepare myself for the military. I'm not trying to be a baby about this but I am in kind of a frustrating spot right now. It's kind like I'm just spinning my wheels. I am also waiting to hear when the Navy will allow some of those laser eye procedures for pilots. I have an IP LCDR friend down there in Pcola and he says it's getting pretty close. I don't know, we'll just wait and see.



Edited by - asupilot on 1 August 2000

 

[Jeff]

I am somewhat curious about the whole laser Surgery buisness with the Navy right now. When I went for my flight physical in Dec. one of the guys with me had had it done prior to dealing with the Navy. BUMED approved it for him, but NOMI didn't know how to process it so they NPQ'd him. After about a month he got it taken care of and is currently in Pcola awaiting API. I personally cleared but, I have two friends wanting to apply for flight school here in the next few months or so, and our recruiter knows nothing on the subject, and I assumed by now they had the new restrictions on laser surgery out. Are they not yet allowing laser surgery in general? How could they contact someone who would be able to help them?

 

[ASUPilot]

Jeff, I don't know about the whole deal regarding corrective laser surgeries and the Navy. Personally, I have this little pterygium in my left eye that needs to be removed. The Bureau of Medicine is reviewing my case right now. I also missed a couple on the depth perception exam but if I can get the procedure approved to remove the pterygium I will head back down to Pcola and re-test my eyes. Hopefully I will pass to pilot standards! My eyes are not perfect, about 20/25 left and 20/30 right, so if the Navy okays some sort of corrective laser surgery I would SERIOUSLY consider it. As far as who to ask, well, just go up the Chain of Command. The Navy WILL understand how bad I want this gig and they will end up hating me in the end because I will take this thing as far as I can. I'm just at a wierd spot right now because I have to get that pterygium removed from my left eye because it is totally disqualifying for both SNA and SNFO. Once that thing is removed I'll roll the dice and head back to NOMI and hope that it's my day for the depth perception test.



Edited by - ASUPilot on 2 August 2000

 

[Tripp]

quote:Are they not yet allowing laser surgery in general? How could they contact someone who would be able to help them?

BuMed (yeah, yeah...I know, you were asking for NOMI, but maybe you can get a number from BuMed for someone over at NOMI) lists the Air Warfare POC for corrective eye surgery as:

CAPT C. Barker, MC, MED-23B
(202) 762-3451, DSN 762
email: cobarker@us.med.navy.mil

Edited by - Tripp on 2 August 2000

 

[webmaster]

It seems that there are still alot of questions regarding what the Navy's stance on corrective eye surgery is (heck, I didn't have a clue until I went looking for answers).

Anyways, here is a web page I found on BUMED's web site (http://navymedicine.med.navy.mil), that should be able to answer some questions.

LASIK . From reading their chart (http://navymedicine.med.navy.mil/PRK/appendices/Appendix2.xls) it seems that for accessions that if had the LASIK procedure then you are not going to get in.

PRK . Whereas with the PRK, you "might" have a shot at getting in the NAVY PRK study, where it states "Favorable waiver review likely if current criteria satisfied, Limited availability (study enrollment required)".

Once again, you probably need to talk directly to BUMED/NOMI and a Flight Surgeon.

http://navymedicine.med.navy.mil/PRK/refractive_surgery_information.htm



Edited by - John Wickham on 2 August 2000