FAA to check overweight pilots for restful sleep

• All overweight pilots will have to be tested for sleep apnea
• Medical examiners will calculate each pilot%27s Body Mass Index
• Anyone with a BMI of at least 40 or at least a 17-inch neck would be evaluated

Overweight airline pilots and air-traffic controllers are going to start getting a closer medical evaluation from the Federal Aviation Administration.

FAA's air surgeon, Fred Tilton, announced the "major" change in policy in a bulletin this month because of concerns that overweight pilots or controllers could lose sleep that could hurt their performance at work. Details will be released "shortly," he said.

The change means that aviation medical examiners will calculate each pilot's Body Mass Index, which calculates weight divided by height, when they are examined every six months or a year. Anyone with a BMI of at least 40 or who has at least a 17-inch neck would have to be evaluated by a sleep specialist.

Pilots can be disqualified if they have an untreated sleep problem called obstructive sleep apnea, which can lead to daytime sleepiness, high blood pressure and death. The new test will require that overweight pilots be treated for obstructive sleep apnea before receiving their certificates.

After all overweight pilots are treated, Tilton said tests for obstructive sleep apnea will be extended for all pilots because 30% of people with a BMI less than 30 suffer from the problem.

The policy change will be extended to controllers, too, but Tilton said logistical details must still be finalized.

The agency began alerting the industry to the changes with educational pamphlets, presentations at safety meetings and adding it to aviation medical examiner seminars.