Preparing for a UK CAA Class 3 Medical:
- To book a medical, please see this website: https://bookeo.com/pilotmedical. Card payment details are needed to secure the booking, but no payment will be taken at the time of booking. Payment for the medical is taken at the time of the medical itself (unless I have a direct billing arrangement with your employer - see point 10 below). If you make a late cancellation (within 24hrs of the appointment) or fail to attend the appointment, a late cancellation failure to attend fee of £50 will be charged.
- The CAA have introduced a new customer Portal system (for all medical, licensing and engineering applications). In order to set up a portal account, you will need to submit proof of identity, which the CAA will then verify before your portal account becomes 'live'. The verification process can take 10 days and this will need to be done well before the medical. Once your portal account is set up, log into it and then navigate to the 'Your Services' section of your portal account. At the bottom of the page in the section 'Apply to Use These Services' you will need to apply for access to the 'Medical' section of the Portal. Once you are given access to the Medical section, it will move up the page into the 'Your Services' section of your portal account. Then, from within the Medical section that you now have access to, you will need to 'Apply for a medical' (of the type you require, Class 1,2,3,LAPL etc). This doesn't book a medical with me, it simply logs your application on the CAA system. When you apply for the medical, you will need to complete an online medical questionnaire. I should warn, the medical application questionnaire is quite 'glitchy' and many fields require some data input (even ones which you think could remain blank) before you can move forward and complete the process. Trial and error is required! Once your application is complete, it will be 'ready for approval' and this is done by me, the AME at the medical when you attend. Finally, the CAA charge a fee to applicants and this fee needs to be paid by the applicant before the AME can access / perform the medical. The CAA fees are £15 for Class 1 and 3, £9 for Class 2 and Nil for LAPL. So too summarise, a) you need a portal account, b) use the account to apply for access to the medical section, c) use the medical section to apply for a medical and d) pay the CAA fee. Without all these steps being completed, the AME is unable to perform the medical. Of course, you will only need to apply for a portal account and access to the medical system once (the first time you use them). For all subsequent medicals, you will use your access via the portal to the medical system to "apply for a medical" (and pay the relevant CAA fee) prior to attending for the medical. The weblink to follow to set up a Portal account and pay for the CAA fee is here and a CAA document summarising the process is here. Bring your passport, driving licence or airside pass as photo ID.
- Bring your passport, driving licence or airside pass as photo ID.
- You must be able to give me your CAA reference number. Without it I can't open your medical file to perform the medical. Bring any current or expired medical certificate, these will carry your CAA reference number. If you don't know your CAA reference number (for instance if it's your initial medical or you've lost your previous certificate) you will need to look up and bring your CAA reference number. You can find it at the top of the page in the 'Personal Details' section of your CAA Portal Account homepage. To reiterate, unless you can tell me your CAA reference number, I can't open your file / perform any medical tasks.
- Use this table to see if you need to have an eye test at an opticians before your medical. For the first medical after age 40, an eye test to include the 'puff of air' test to measure your intraoccular pressures will be required. For that, the standard report form to take to the optician is here. Otherwise, an opticians exam won't be needed unless you wear glasses or contact lenses or have an eyesight limitation on your current certificate. If that applies to you, you will need to take this Extended eye exam form to the opticians to be completed. How often you need an extended eye exam will depend on the degree of vision deficit you have. If you have a strong prescription, it will be every 2 years and if not, it will be every 4 years as outlined in the table. If in doubt, I suggest just getting it done, the exams are readily available and low cost if not free.
- If you have glasses, bring them (even if you wear contact lenses - we’ll check your eyes with and without glasses).
- If you have any medical conditions or are on any medication (particularly new diagnoses or treatments) email me beforehand with details. I want to help you prepare for the medical to minimise problems on the day. The CAA produces flow charts for many conditions and these are widely available on the CAA website. If you have any of these conditions, you’ll need to comply with their requirements. Sometimes a summary or report will be required from whichever doctor is managing the condition.
- Many will need a finger prick haemoglobin blood test. Whilst I’m taking that blood we could use a drop to check your lipid profile. For some this is mandatory but for most it’s optional. So consider if you would like your lipid profile checking at the medical. I’ll use the information to calculate your stroke and heart attack risk over the next decade and discuss strategies to reduce elevated risk,
- If you would like a chaperone to be present during the medical, either bring someone with you or let me know beforehand if you’d like me to make arrangements for one.
- Bring some means of paying (see fees and paying pages) unless you work for a company with whom I have an arrangement (presently only TIA ATCOs).