ResMed and FAA approval on CPAPs

[JayC]

http://www.resmed.com/us/documents/FAA_ ... Letter.pdf


This appears to be dated March 2010, and seems to speak to the lately voiced needs for FAA approved label.

Not sure if this was actually posted here before, if it was I missed it......

J

[dtsm]

Thank you. I had written twice for an updated letter and never got a response from ResMed. This will certainly help for both domestic and international travel.

[LoQ]

So if you have a ResMed machine on the list, do you print this letter out and take it with you when flying?

[LinkC]

ONLY if you intend to USE the machine in flight. FAA approval is to ensure the machine won't emit spurious signals that might interfere with nav or com systems of the aircraft. If it's not actually turned on during the flight, they couldn't care less.

If you need to use it in flight, you didn't plan your trip very well...

[JayC]

I will, where I expect to need to sleep enroute........so far none of my flights have been long enough or timed late enough that sleep would be needed. And when I have assembled all the ltrs/Rx/etc. I will just leave it in my usual CPAP carry bag for all travel.

I have a portable battery now and think that even on a shorter flight I might want to sleep if I am super tired and can't keep awake.

If you nose around the ResMed site, and the faa regs site, you'll find that someone really messed up the language between the draft and the passing, and this won't be able to be addressed until some later session. The FAA requests that the airlines honor what the FAA *meant* to say in the regs, rather than what they appear to say!! Lovely for us!

So, yes, I am planning on printing all the letters I can find on the issue, as confusing as they are, so when I am flying to Peru (hopefully Jan 2012) I will have all I need to sleep as I need to with no major hassles.

J

[LinkC]

Have you actually determined that you NEED it while sleeping in a semi-upright position? I sometimes fall asleep watching TV (in a chair) and don't have apneas in that position. You might save yourself a MAJOR hassle by finding out before your trip.

[JayC]

....<snip>....If you need to use it in flight, you didn't plan your trip very well...

LinkC --- I don't agree.....some of us have to juggle cost, and transpo to and from airport, and sometimes a red eye from coast to coast makes more sense.......and short of further messing with sleep by trying to stay up all night, using our buddies enroute is going to be the better option, even with a few extra hassles.

I'm investigating my peru trip and most schedules, if no delays, put me in near or after midnight into Lima.....taking a flight leaving the states around midnight and arriving in Lima in the morning probably makes more sense overall......

I'd love if you'd share more of what you were thinking when you typed the comment, because I cannot easily find a scenario that matches your assertion....

J

[LinkC]

Sure. Transcontinental flights are roughly 6-7 hrs in duration. Even adding in travel to/from airports and reasonable layovers, we're only talking 10-11 hrs tops. Don't know about you, but I'm usually awake 15-16 hrs per day. The average trip is not nearly that long.. You can easily plan your trip around your sleep schedule...or plan your sleep around your travel schedule. It's all in the planning, as I said.

When you say "a few extra hassles", have you ever actually USED xPAP on an aircraft? I have used mine on an overnight train (with lots more room than an aircraft!) and will never try that again! With proper planning there's no need to.

[JayC]

No I haven't yet used my APAP in flight..... but have run thru what I would do regarding placement, etc. And I am looking forward to taking a multi-night train trip (in coach, not room) because I now have the portable battery power to give me the option again!! I have the placement, and the attitude issues all worked out!!

My hypopnea/apnea is well treated (low numbers/non existant leaks) with the equipment and settings........but I still have issues of sleep phase, seasonal issues with light, and lower than optimal length of sleep -- in part from decades of unconsciously avoiding sleep until I was too tired to stay awake....... I am trending to longer sleep....but it is very slow, and has been interrupted by things outside of SDB.

So when I need to sleep, I need to sleep. If I sleep, I need my machine, or I will wake up feeling worse. THAT is the bigger hassle for me......the zombie mode of waking up from fragmented short non-restorative sleep. I *have* nodded off sitting upright (sometimes with my hands still on the keyboard!) and upright doesn't prevent whatever my issues are..... I wish it did......

The only hurdle for me is making sure I have what I need regarding information, and pre-approvals where needed, so I can sleep if I need to....whether it is 12 noon or 12 midnite.

J

[LinkC]

Let us know how it works out...

[Jay K]

JayC, Thanks for the link to the Resmed letter. I won't be using my Resmed S9 on a flight though until there is an appropriate battery adapter (in the meantime, I use a System One with a battery when travelling). Does anyone have updated information on whether there is now (or will be shortly) an adapter that can be used with the cpap.com battery?

If you need to use it in flight, you didn't plan your trip very well...

The notion that if you need to use an XPAP on a flight you haven't planned well is ridiculous. On business, I often am on overnight flights that last for 11 or 12 hours and I use an APAP or BiPAP on these. Moreover, I fly business or first class, which have seats that recline into beds. I suppose there is a chance I could avoid using my APAP or BIPAP if I did not recline the seat fully, but then again, I suppose with good planning I could avoid using the APAP at home by sleeping in a chair rather than a bed.

[dtsm]

The notion that if you need to use an XPAP on a flight you haven't planned well is ridiculous. On business, I often am on overnight flights that last for 11 or 12 hours and I use an APAP or BiPAP on these.

Total agreement here. Many of the non-stop trans-Pacific flights are at minimum 12 hrs and many 15+ hours. Many depart evening hours and arrive early morning hours. Perfect conditions to sleep a solid 6-8 hours in-flight to reduce jet lag.

[BlackSpinner]

If you need to use it in flight, you didn't plan your trip very well...

Until recently I flew standbye - for free. You fly when there is a space.
In the past when I flew for business I flew when they said I flew - in business travel you often don't have any say as to when you travel. And then there is the fact that in many areas there may only be one flight going where you want to go and it is over night.

You can't call up a plane like you can a taxi unless you are very very rich with your own pilot and jet.