aircraft mechanic and colour vision deficiency.

kingsley16 · 04-04-2009 07:09AM #1

Yesterday I found out that I have colour blindness...Not really supprised cause i've always had problems with certain colours for as long as I can remember now. I have red/green colour blindness (the most common).
If you are confused about what colour blindness is please read below...

Color blindness (color vision deficiency) is a condition in which certain colors cannot be distinguished, and is most commonly due to an inherited condition. Red/Green color blindness is by far the most common form, about 99%, and causes problems in distinguishing reds and greens. Another color deficiency Blue/Yellow also exists, but is rare and there is no commonly available test for it.
Depending on just which figures you believe, color blindness seems to occur in about 8% - 12% of males of European origin and about one-half of 1% of females. I did not find any figures for frequency in other races. Total color blindness (seeing in only shades of gray) is extremely rare.
There is no treatment for color blindness, nor is it usually the cause of any significant disability. However, it can be very frustrating for individuals affected by it. Those who are not color blind seem to have the misconception that color blindness means that a color blind person sees only in black and white or shades of gray. While this sort of condition is possible, it is extremely rare. Being color blind does keep one from performing certain jobs and makes others difficult.

lol so people don't start thinking I see everything in black and white, I have 20/20 vision, just can't tell certain colours. :cool:

Now my question is...AM I SUITABLE FOR A JOB IN AIRCRAFT MECHANICS?!?! :eek:

I went to the Air Atlanta aerospace webite to print out an apprenticeship application form for myself 2 days ago, and on the form it asked " Do you suffer from a colour vision impairment? "
I was confused when I saw that question, so I decided to look it up (seeing as how I have peoblems with colours) and I took an online test for colour blindness. Unfortunately I do have colour blindness! :mad:
Will this stop me from getting an apprenticeship with Air Atlanta or any other aircraft mechanic schools? This is my future and i'm not interested in anything else at all, so what do I do if my disability affects my career?

Check out the these websites and test your colour vision

http://www.toledo-bend.com/colorblind/Ishihara.asp
http://digg.com/d1p2P

Overheal · 04-04-2009 07:13AM

The navys are now admitting the colorblind so i assume you are still able to find a position. In fact according to the wiki it makes you better able to see camoflauge, so thats cool

kingsley16 · 04-04-2009 07:18AM

Overheal wrote: »

The navys are now admitting the colorblind so i assume you are still able to find a position.

I hope they are.

motherfunker · 07-04-2009 10:07AM

Do you really want to be held responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people if you happened to wire something incorrectly. There was a plane crash some years ago where a pilot saw a warning light for a fire in one engine so he switched off that engine, unfortunately someone had wired the engine warnings incorrectly and he switched off the wrong engine. It could have been the british midlands plane that hit the motorway embankment but dont quote me on that.
Simple mistakes in that industry can have catastrophic consequences. Electricians are not allowed to have colour blindness and this is basically what you would be with todays high tech planes.

Turbulent Bill · 07-04-2009 10:42AM

motherfunker wrote: »

Do you really want to be held responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people if you happened to wire something incorrectly. There was a plane crash some years ago where a pilot saw a warning light for a fire in one engine so he switched off that engine, unfortunately someone had wired the engine warnings incorrectly and he switched off the wrong engine. It could have been the british midlands plane that hit the motorway embankment but dont quote me on that.
Simple mistakes in that industry can have catastrophic consequences. Electricians are not allowed to have colour blindness and this is basically what you would be with todays high tech planes.

What crash was that? The Kegworth air disaster had nothing to do with miswired warning lights, and I don't remember any that did.

If the maintenance companies allow technicians to have colour blindness (not sure if they do), then go for it. They are heavily regulated, much more so that electricians, so I wouldn't have an issue with the procedures used.

From a purely engineering perspective, given how common red/green colour blindness is, I'm surprised that red and green wires don't have additional markings (dots, squares etc.) to distinguish them - earth wires already have green and yellow stripes. I know there's a huge base of existing wiring, but surely new ones should have more markings?

motherfunker · 07-04-2009 09:13PM

I stand corrected but I doubt the company put a colour blindness test on their site if it isint important to them. My main point was that a simple mistake could have terrible consequences for a lot of people and there are certain jobs where colour blindness is a big hindrance.

kingsley16 · 08-04-2009 01:53AM

I can tell green and red colours, but it all depends on the shades. For example I thought the green L on google was red, but if it was grass green I could easily tell the difference.

kingsley16 · 08-04-2009 01:56AM

Turbulent Bill wrote: »

From a purely engineering perspective, given how common red/green colour blindness is, I'm surprised that red and green wires don't have additional markings (dots, squares etc.) to distinguish them - earth wires already have green and yellow stripes. I know there's a huge base of existing wiring, but surely new ones should have more markings?

You got a good point.

aircraft mechanic and colour vision deficiency.

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