How are mentally ill pilots kept out of the air?

How are mentally ill pilots kept out of the air? My book, Can’t Be Trusted, provides one example in answer to that question.

It is a memoir about engineering, aviation, and mental health. I provide details of my upbringing and accomplishments in life to try to persuade readers that I do not have schizophrenia as claimed by the FAA. It is a book where engineering is a grand endeavor and the nerds are the heroes. It is also about aeromedicine and psychiatry. Computer scientists, engineers, physicists, and psychiatrists might be interested in such a read.

The interchanges with the aeromedical authorities and a concurring opinion written on the Yale University letterhead are printed in an appendix. One issue was the free mixing of pre- and post-DSM-III terminology without ever acknowledging the existence of the DSM. Yale defended the practice.

The details of my mental health history are covered frankly in the book. I do not claim a perfect record and some people I know feel I should not be flying. Readers can decide for themselves. I am not an emotional cripple. I am happily married with two adult children and I am a successful laser engineer with a Ph.D. from MIT.

More information is contained at the link, including a 10-minute video introduction to the book.

Bart Johnson