Longer Duration for Some Medicals Proposed

Under a notice of proposed rulemaking published today, the FAA is seeking comments on its intention to increase the duration of first-class and third-class medicals for airmen under the age of 40. Currently, the maximum validity of a first-class medical certificate is six months, regardless of age. For a third-class medical certificate, the validity period is 36 months for pilots under 40. The FAA wants to increase the duration of validity from six months to one year for first-class medical certificates and from three years to five years for third-class medicals for pilots younger than 40. Existing U.S. medical certificate validity standards for commercial pilots under age 40 in a multi-crew setting currently are the same as those of the International Civil Aviation Organization and, therefore, the FAA said it “sees no need to consider a change to FAA second-class medical certificate validity standards.” Comments on the proposal are due June 11.