In-Flight Speech Intelligibility Evaluation of a Service Member With Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Case Report

Abstract

This case report describes the in-flight speech intelligibility evaluation of an aircraft crewmember with pure tone audiometric thresholds that exceed the U.S. Army's flight standards. Results of in-flight speech intelligibility testing highlight the inability to predict functional auditory abilities from pure tone audiometry and underscore the importance of conducting validated functional hearing evaluations to determine aviation fitness-for-duty.