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The jab

Here in Washington State, everyone will become eligible for the Covid vaccine beginning April 15. Up to now, I haven't been eligible under state guidelines even though I'm over 50 years old. I don't meet any of the other requirements such as working in an environment where I might be exposed, taking care of someone who is more susceptible, and so on. At some point in the next couple days I'll try to set up an appointment. My preference is for one of the vaccines that require two doses (e.g. the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines) but, if it came down to it, I'd take the Johnson&Johnson one-dose vaccine despite it's lower (but still impressive) effectiveness.

Which brings us to flying. The FAA has said that pilots should not fly for 48 hours after receiving any Covid vaccine injection. So, for the two-dose vaccines, this means no flying for two days after the first dose, and again after the second dose. When I get an appointment, I'm going to try for one early in the week so that I won't be grounded on a weekend. Of course, this assumes the weather will cooperate on that weekend but that's out of my control.

By that measure, it would make sense to get the one-dose vaccine from J&J. And I may actually do that. It will depend in part on where I can get an appointment and what vaccine(s) they are offering. Not all vaccines are available at every location. For example, my primary care clinic is offering the J&J and Moderna vaccines, but not the one from Pfizer.

Flying is very heavily regulated, much more so than driving. And it's regulated at the federal level whereas driving is regulated mostly at the state level. These regulations may seem onerous but, unlike some other domains of government regulation, the FARs and directives from the FAA seem to be (at least mostly) driven by actual, practical concerns. For the most part, they make sense and are intended to promote safety, rather than exercise control for its own sake. Of course there are a lot of pilots who could fly safely immediately after receiving a dose of the vaccine, but some people are experiencing side effects that are serious enough so the FAA has decided not to take the chance. A 48-hour waiting period seems to be a reasonable compromise. There are, of course, some sections of the FARs that could stand some significant modernization, but that's a whole 'nother topic for another day.

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