The FAA is expected to launch MedXPress, an online system that will allow pilots to electronically complete their applicant information on FAA Form 8500-8 before going to their AME’s office, sometime soon.
Yet another effort to speed up the medical process, the system is designed to be as user friendly as possible. While initially slated to be operational in November, the launch date for MedXPress has been moved up to sometime this year.
“We’ve rolled out stuff in the past that didn’t work real good and got some hate mail,” Silberman conceded. “We want this to be right from the start.”
While some pilots question whether this is an attempt at Big Brother checking to see if medical information is changed between the time the form is submitted online and when the AME enters his information, Silberman said that just isn’t so. “No one is sitting around looking at your answers,” he said. “I don’t have the manpower for that.”
But say you fill out the form, then realize at the AME’s office that you made a mistake. No worries, Silberman said. “Once the AME pulls it up, he can make changes,” he said. “That’s called taking a history.”
But what about security? Pilots still recall last year’s thefts of laptops from government officials that included personal information such as addresses and social security numbers. “This information does not reside in a laptop,” Silberman said. “It resides in a server in OKC.”
For more information: