Some types of contact lenses are not authorized by the FAA, what types should be avoided?
Pilots wearing glasses or contact lenses must meet all FAA vision standards. Those requiring near and distant correction may do this with either bifocals worn all the time or wearing contact lenses that correct for distant and having reading glasses available for near vision. Mono Vision Contact Lenses (MVCL) claim to eliminate the need for glasses without surgery. The MVCL technique uses one contact lens to focus at near while the lens in the other eye focuses at distant. The pilot suppresses the blurred image from the eye not in use depending on the distance of the viewed object. The FAA PROHIBITS use of Mono Vision Contact Lenses (MVCL) because each eye does not correct to 20/20 at distant and to 20/40 at near separately. The FAA also prohibits the use of the new multi-focal contact lenses that correct at distant in the central zone while correcting for near vision at the periphery. This works fine when looking down at something to read, but blurs images in the periphery on lateral
