Aviation Health and Safety Research Library
Welcome to our health and wellness resource library for pilots and aviation professionals. This page brings together trusted third-party research, expert insights, and published articles focused on the mental and physical factors that shape safe, sustainable performance in aviation.
Each resource includes a brief summary to help you quickly understand its relevance, along with a link to the full study or article for deeper learning.
The Call for FAA Regulation Change
The author argues that the FAA’s current medical certification policies for individuals with ADHD are outdated and inconsistent with modern scientific understanding, explaining that the rules exclude otherwise qualified applicants.
The untapped potential of narrative as a tool…
This commentary argues that the aviation industry faces significant mental health challenges among pilots, which negatively affect both individual well-being and operational safety. The authors suggest using…
Aviator Healthcare Hesitance: An Examination
This article discusses three possible sources of fear regarding pilots’ health. It cites these reasons: pilot personality, financial considerations, and lack of trust. It further shows evidence that many pilots want to get help.
FAA easing mental health barriers for pilots
This article reports that the FAA Federal Air Surgeon announced efforts to reduce aeromedical certification barriers for pilots related to mental-health issues, including easing of rules around mental-health disclosures and certification.
Mental health: A study of aviation students
Laila Stein investigated how aviation students, faculty, and flight instructors at WMU perceive the Federal Aviation Administration’s regulations regarding mental-health disclosures and their impact on help-seeking behaviors.
The Career Adaptability and Support Structures…
This study focuses on how commercial pilots who lose their medical certification cope with the career shock and navigate transitions in occupational identity and employment. The authors found that…
Healthcare avoidance behavior; U.S. military pilots
This study explored how U.S. military pilots report avoiding or delaying medical care because they fear losing their flying status. The authors note that these behaviours may undermine pilot health and aviation safety.
Breaking the Pilot Healthcare Barrier
This study found that group narrative therapy significantly reduced depression and anxiety scores in these patients. Findings suggest that group narrative therapy may benefit psychological symptoms in addiction.
Healthcare avoidance in aircraft pilots due…
In this anonymous survey of 3,765 U.S. pilots, 56.1% reported a history of healthcare avoidance behavior specifically because they were concerned about the potential loss of their aeromedical certificate.
Pilots’ Healthcare When Experiencing Chest Pain
This study highlights that pilots experiencing chest pain often have significant anxiety about seeking healthcare, primarily due to concerns about potential impacts on their medical certification and flying status.
Preliminary Study of U.S. Air Force Pilot Perceptions
The study highlights that pilots experiencing chest pain often have significant anxiety about seeking healthcare, primarily due to concerns about potential impacts on their medical certification and flying status.
Common mental disorders among U.S. Army Aviation…
This article reports that the 5-year prevalence of common mental disorders among US Army aviation personnel was 3.6%. The study reported that granted waivers were much more likely to occur for adjustment disorders.
Waivers for Mental Disorders in the Aviation…
These authors review how the U.S. armed services handle mental-health waivers for aviators and argue that the current system lacks consistent, evidence-based criteria. Because aviators often fear career consequences, many…
Regulatory brief: Pilot medical applications…
The brief explains that a federal investigation uncovered cases in which pilots held valid FAA medical certificates while simultaneously receiving disability benefits for potentially disqualifying conditions.