To get an FAA medical exam in Virginia, complete your MedXPress application, print the confirmation number, and take it to a designated AME in Virginia. Bring your ID and any required clinical progress notes, and most AMEs will issue the certificate the same day. If the AME defers your case, the FAA takes over and may route you through Special Issuance or a SODA.
TL;DR:
The FAA doesn't publish a curated shortlist of examiners. It publishes the AME Locator, a searchable database of every currently designated examiner, and that's where your search should start, not a generic clinic directory. Search by city or zip code, then check each name before you call.
A few things separate a smooth booking from a wasted trip:
Virginia has both clinic-based examiners and AMEs affiliated with flight schools. Clinics like the Aviation Medicine Center of Virginia tend to have broader diagnostic equipment on hand, which matters if your exam is likely to need extra testing.
Pro Tip: When you call to book, mention that you've already started your MedXPress application and ask if the office offers a pre-exam consultation. A quick records review beforehand catches missing documentation before it costs you a deferral.
The paperwork comes before the physical, and skipping steps here is the most common way pilots delay their own certification.
The single biggest reason this process stalls isn't a failed physical. It's a forgotten confirmation number that keeps the AME from pulling up your file at all.
Most delays trace back to paperwork, not physiology. The AME can't work around missing documentation, and neither can the FAA.
That third item trips up more pilots than anything else on this list. A clinical progress note is not the same document as the After Visit Summary your doctor's portal spits out automatically. The FAA's own guidance is specific about this: AMEs need the note a physician actually writes for clinical communication, with detail on functional status and current treatment, not a generic portal printout.
Pro Tip: Call your physician's office a week ahead and ask for "the clinical progress note used for referrals," not the after-visit summary. That single phrase saves a lot of back-and-forth.
If your history is complicated, ask the AME's office about a pre-exam consultation. A quick records review ahead of time flags gaps before they turn into a deferral.
Your certificate class depends on what you're flying for, not what you'd like to have someday.
EKG frequency and age cutoffs are spelled out in the FAA's own tables and in the Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners, so check those directly rather than relying on secondhand summaries. If you're not sure which class fits your goals, our breakdown of FAA medical classes walks through the practical differences in plain terms.
Private pilots who qualify may also use BasicMed instead of a standard third-class certificate. BasicMed skips the AME visit for eligible pilots but comes with its own restrictions on aircraft size, altitude, and passenger count, so it's not a universal substitute for a Part 67 exam.
A deferral isn't a rejection. It just means the AME can't make the call and hands your file to the FAA instead.
The most common triggers are:
If you're deferred, the FAA sends a letter listing exactly what it needs. This is where pilots either speed things up or slow them down further. Sending a real clinical progress note, not an After Visit Summary, is often the difference between a quick resolution and months of waiting. FAA guidance is explicit that automated portal summaries frequently lack the detail examiners need.
Special Issuance and SODA (Statement of Demonstrated Ability) exist precisely because plenty of pilots fly safely with conditions that would otherwise disqualify them outright. Full transparency and complete records at the outset tend to shorten the process considerably. Timelines vary by case complexity and how quickly your physician's office responds. There's no fixed number of weeks the FAA guarantees, so plan your training schedule with some buffer if you know a deferral is likely.
For most third-class exams, plan on 30 to 45 minutes in the chair. First-class exams, or any case needing an EKG or extra testing, run longer.
Pricing varies by clinic and certificate class. Virginia providers like the Aviation Medicine Center of Virginia publish sample fee ranges that separate third-, second-, and first-class exams, with EKGs often billed separately. Specialist records requests or a second visit for missing paperwork add cost on top of the base exam fee.
Before you book, ask the office directly what's included. A five-minute phone call about the fee structure and whether EKG or urine testing is bundled in saves you an unpleasant surprise at check-out.
Getting your medical certificate isn't just paperwork. It's a milestone that fits into your broader flight training timeline, and treating it as an afterthought is how pilots end up with a lapsed medical mid course.
Before you touch MedXPress, gather your documents:
Parrillo Air Services builds medical readiness into flight lesson planning for exactly this reason. A lapsed medical mid-training derails momentum, and momentum is what gets students through certification on schedule. Our guidance on FAA medical history documentation covers the specific records language that tends to satisfy AMEs on the first pass, and our vision requirements guide is worth a look if corrective lenses are part of your picture.
Here's what the research on this topic actually supports, and it cuts against a lot of the anxiety pilots bring to their first FAA medical: the exam itself is rarely the problem. The physical components, vision, hearing, vitals, are routine. What sinks pilots is paperwork they didn't know they needed.
The conventional advice online treats the AME visit like a pass/fail test of your health. That framing is backwards. The AME's job is closer to a records audit with a physical attached. Pilots with real, documented, well-managed conditions get certified constantly through Special Issuance. Pilots with vague documentation, even for minor issues, are the ones who get deferred and wait.
If you take one thing from this article, make it this: call your physician's office before you call the AME. Get the clinical progress note terminology right, request records early, and treat the 90-day window as a real deadline, not a suggestion. That single habit prevents more delays than any amount of pre-exam nervousness ever will. Documentation, not performance anxiety, decides how fast you walk out with a certificate in hand.
— Gm
Parrillo Air Services doesn't perform FAA medicals. We're not an AME, and we don't pretend to be one. What we do is make sure your flight training doesn't stall while you sort out the paperwork side of certification.
Students juggling MedXPress, an AME appointment, and lesson scheduling often lose weeks to timing mismatches, not medical issues; our guide on TSA clearance for pilots explains administrative delays that can affect certification timing. Parrillo Air Services coordinates your training calendar around your medical readiness from the start, so a deferred exam or a records request doesn't quietly stall your private pilot certificate progress. We also walk students through the documentation habits that keep AME visits short, drawn from the same FAA standards covered above. A $199 Discovery Flight is the easiest way to meet an instructor, ask about scheduling around your medical, and see whether our approach fits how you want to train. Reach out through our site to set one up.
This article is general information, not a substitute for advice from a qualified doctor. Consult a qualified healthcare professional about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.
Use the FAA AME Locator to search Virginia by city or zip code for currently designated examiners, including clinic-based options like the Aviation Medicine Center of Virginia.
Yes, a VA disability rating doesn't automatically disqualify you. The AME reviews your specific condition against the standards in 14 C.F.R. part 67, and many pilots with a VA rating still qualify, sometimes through Special Issuance.
Fees vary by AME and certificate class. Virginia providers such as the Aviation Medicine Center of Virginia list separate pricing tiers for first, second, and third class exams, often with EKG testing billed as an add-on, so confirm the fee structure when you book.
The FAA reviews whatever medical history and documentation you or your AME submit, which can include VA records if they're relevant to a condition under review. Bringing detailed clinical progress notes rather than generic summaries helps the FAA evaluate your case accurately.
Bring a government-issued photo ID, your MedXPress confirmation number, a current medication list, and any clinical progress notes tied to chronic or recent conditions, ideally dated within 90 days.
Parrillo Air Services doesn't perform FAA medicals, but we build medical readiness into your training calendar from the start — so a deferred exam or a records request doesn't stall your progress.
Book a $199 Discovery Flight