Can pilots fly with a cold?

Generally speaking, flying with a cold or the flu isn't worth the risk. When you're tired, sick, or distracted, you're not at the top of your game, and flying just isn't a good idea. Even if you only have slight symptoms, it's better to stay grounded than to put yourself or others in danger by flying.



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The safest rule is not to fly while suffering from any illness. If this rule is considered too stringent for a particular illness, the pilot should contact an aviation medical examiner for advice.

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If a pilot gets ill before the flight, he has to refuse the duty. It's his responsibility to show up fit for duty and he should be conscious enough that the safety of a few hundred innocent passengers plus crew depend on him being capable of doing his job properly.

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PLEASE NOTE: You should avoid flying if your nose is congested from a cold or allergies. In the most severe case, this may lead to a permanent decrease in your hearing, prolonged dizziness, or severe pain.

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If you fly with a head cold or seasonal allergies, Dr. Pinkston said it's possible you may significantly stretch your eardrum because your Eustachian tubes wouldn't be working properly to equalize pressure. If the stretching of the eardrum is considerable, these problems may occur: Capillaries in the ear break.

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  • Cabin Air Quality.
  • Cancer.
  • Circadian Rhythm Disruption (Jet Lag)
  • Communicable Diseases.
  • Cosmic Ionizing Radiation.
  • Job Stress.
  • Musculoskeletal Disorders.
  • Noise/Hearing Loss.


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The FAA encourages pilots to seek help if they have a mental health condition since most, if treated, do not disqualify a pilot from flying.

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Flying with a congested nose is not recommended because it may worsen your infection or cause serious medical emergencies.

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Opiates, such as Morphine, Codeine, Lortab, Percodan, Oxycontin. Muscle relaxants, such as Soma, Sonata, Flexeril. Anicholinergics, such as Levsin, Bnetyl, Transderm Scop. Sedating antihistamines, such as Benadryl, Chlorpheniramine, Zyrtec.

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As an example, a pilot using Sudafed to help control mild nasal congestion should clearly not continue flying while using it if that pilot develops an adverse reaction such as dizziness, headaches, or irregular heartbeats.

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In the U.S., there are no FAA age limits for pilots except for commercial airline pilots employed by airlines certificated under 14 CFR Part 121. These airlines cannot employ pilots after they reach the age of 65. However, these pilots may stay on with a Part 121 carrier in some other role, such as flight engineer.

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Cruise flight above 10,000 feet is non-sterile, meaning the flight crew can discuss whatever they'd like.

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