EP 233: Pilots, Don’t Ignore This! The Medical Battle That Almost Ended a Career
Ready 4 Pushback
Nik Fialka
4.8 • 716 Ratings
🗓️ 7 April 2025
⏱️ 41 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Former Army Black Hawk pilot and airline captain Ross McClure shares his deeply personal story of struggling with a back injury that nearly ended his flying career. After an incident involving a lasing on final approach, his back problems worsened, leading to years of medical challenges, surgeries, and legal battles. Ross opens up about navigating the complexities of FAA medical certification, VA healthcare, and workers' compensation while finding the right care team to help him recover. His journey is a powerful reminder for pilots to prioritize their health and advocate for themselves.
What You’ll Learn from this Episode:
The importance of proactive medical care for pilots
How a back injury sidelined Ross’s career and how he fought to return
The role of FAA medical exams, workers’ comp, and VA benefits in a pilot’s recovery
How AMAS and subscription-based pilot healthcare services can help
Why pilots should be aggressive in seeking medical treatment and legal assistance when needed
#Aviation #AviationCareers #pilotcareer #pilottips #pilotcareertips #aviationcrew #AviationJobs #AviationLeadership #flying #PilotSuccess #pilotpodcast #PilotPreparation #Pilotrecruitment #AviationEducation #AviationOpportunities #AviationPodcast #flyingtips #AirlineInterviewPrep #PilotDevelopment #PilotFinance #PilotExperience #PilotTraining
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey, pilot, welcome back to Ready for Pushback. My name's Nick Fialke. You found another interview episode. And here we are. Today's guest is a gentleman named Ross McClure. Ross got injured on the job while flying. And he went through the whole process of workers' compensation. And it's a lot. It's a lot of things. |
| 0:25.3 | And I know there are a lot of pilots that get injured on the job. And if you know somebody that was |
| 0:31.0 | injured on the job, send them this episode. There's so much good information in here about what to do |
| 0:36.6 | when you get injured, how to manage |
| 0:38.6 | it, how to look out for yourself, and how not to listen to what some doctors may or may not |
| 0:45.5 | say lots of really, really good info in here. |
| 0:50.3 | So sit back, relax. |
| 0:53.5 | Let's get ready for pushback. |
| 0:56.1 | Most pilots don't understand what career opportunities are available in the world of aviation. |
| 1:02.5 | They're making career decisions based on advice from friends or posts on internet forums, |
| 1:08.2 | meaning they are taking huge risk with their livelihood without having |
| 1:12.0 | all the details. |
| 1:13.4 | This podcast was created to help you understand the aviation industry so you can find your |
| 1:18.9 | dream job. |
| 1:20.3 | Let's get ready for pushback. |
| 1:22.6 | Here's your host and my dad, Nick Fialca. |
| 1:27.4 | All right, Ross McClure. How are you, sir? |
| 1:31.5 | I'm very well. Thanks, Dick. Dude, thank you for joining me today. I'm so interested in this conversation |
| 1:38.7 | because I saw you post on the internet somewhere about an event that happened to you. |
| 1:46.2 | And I was like, hey, man, do you want to talk about this? |
| 1:49.8 | And I can't believe that you said yes. |
| 1:52.4 | So I'm super stoked. |
... |
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