Aviation Health Unit - concerned with passenger and aircrew health

Pilots - for Certification / Medical enquiries, please contact the Medical Department on 01293 573700, or email medicalweb@caa.co.uk

Introduction

The Aviation Health Unit (AHU) was formed on 1 December 2003.  Based at Gatwick within the Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA’s) Medical Department, its main role is to advise government, through the Aviation Health Working Group* (AHWG), on passenger and crew health issues.  As this is a different requirement from the safety regulation role of the CAA, the Department for Transport (DfT) retains responsibility for any policy changes arising from health recommendations.  From 1 April 2007 the Unit's funding has been provided by industry in common with the other functions of the CAA.

*The AHWG is an interdepartmental organisation, chaired by the DfT with representatives from the CAA, Health and Safety Executive and the Department of Health.  It meets every two months to discuss issues relevant to aviation health and was instrumental in the decision to form the AHU.  At alternate meetings, industry and passenger representatives attend.  

Background

A House of Lords Select Committee published a report on the subject of air travel and health in November 2000 and the Government responded to its recommendations.  One of the report’s recommendations to Government was that a central source be given responsibility for advising government on the issues relevant to aviation health. The DfT consulted the aviation industry and interested parties with a number of options, the preferred one of which was to give responsibility to the CAA. In 2003, the DfT asked the CAA to set up the unit. 

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee completed their review "Air Travel and Health: an Update" and published their report on 12 December 2007.  The Committee have had further debate   on  24 November 2008  on some key topics, including DVT and pandemic flu planning and the Government’s response. 

Responsibilities

The subject ‘aviation health’ encompasses a wide range of individual topics, such as deep venous thrombosis, cabin air quality, transmission of infection, cosmic radiation and the provision of information.  A responsibility of the AHU will therefore be to review research and other relevant information on aviation health and to set priorities, in consultation with the Aviation Health Working Group, for areas which require further attention. 

Contacting the Aviation Health Unit and Sources of travel advice

The AHU can be contacted by e-mail to the CAA’s Medical Department, by telephone or by post (details at the foot of this page).  However, individuals seeking advice on whether a personal medical condition is acceptable for a particular flight should approach their local medical adviser for information. This is best obtained from a general practitioner or hospital doctor, or other health professional familiar with the details of a person’s medical history, in consultation with the airline involved.  Useful information for passengers can be found on the Department for Transport Website and the World Health Organization web site.  For medical professionals more technical advice on how to assess a patient’s fitness to travel is provided on the Aerospace Medical Association web site.

Any media enquiries should be directed to the CAA’s Corporate Communications Department on 020 7453 6030 or at press.office@caa.co.uk

News

The introduction of Body Scanners in security screening has caused some concern.  Our Passenger Health FAQ's section has been updated with the latest information regarding this technology.

Confirmed cases of H1N1 have been reported in many countries.  On this basis, the World Health Organization has declared Phase 6 of its pandemic alert system.  This decision reflects the geographic spread of the virus and not its severity.  Contact tracing of the people in close proximity to those who have been symptomatic on flights has now been discontinued. The move to Phase 6 does not trigger any material change to our response in the UK.  Actions taken in the UK are based on the situation here and our preparations are well advanced.   There is a clear indication that the number of cases of H1N1 in England has decreased significantly in the last week (ending 6 August 2009).  The majority of cases continue to be mild and there is no sign that the virus is changing.  It is not becoming more severe or developing resistance to anti-virals. Read More

The European air passenger health project is completed.  Findings were presented at the ICE international conference in Munich during 9 and 10 March 2009.  A team of researchers, medical experts and cabin environment specialists investigated the effects on passengers of a range of cabin conditions.  Overall, conclusions indicate that flying in current commercial aircraft environments poses, in general, no significant health risk for passengers. 

The work on cabin air continues and is led by Cranfield University, a copy of the Cabin Air Sampling Study Functionality Test can be viewed on the Department for Transport website.  http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/aviation/hci/cabinairtest.pdf

Assessing fitness to fly - Updated Guidelines for medical professionals, revised on 4 February 2009 by the Aviation Health Unit, to include a new section on psychiatric conditions.  Visit our What's New page for details.

Pregnancy and air travel.  There have been some press articles which may have alarmed those wishing to travel by air during their pregnancy.  Visit our Passenger Health FAQ's or our Guidelines for Medical Professionals for information. 

For those users who are visually or audibly impaired the grey summary bar at the top of this page has been enabled to be read by screen reader software. 

Aviation Health Unit
Medical Department
CAA Safety Regulation Group
Aviation House
Gatwick Airport South
West Sussex   RH6 0YR

E-mail: aviationhealthunit@caa.co.uk
Telephone: 01293 573674

(For Certification / Medical enquiries - please contact the Medical Department on 01293 573700)

Updated:  4 February 2010