Getting a Dose of Flying with NyQuil in the System

You may feel better on the medication, but you’ll fly worse.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, August 09, 2023 at 03:29 PM ET

Verified

For those who have never used an AATD, it can be more difficult to “fly” than an actual airplane. [Redbird]

Key Takeaways:

The author, having taken NyQuil, used a flight simulator to test its effects on instrument proficiency, aware of aeromedical warnings about increased spatial disorientation risk for pilots using such medications.
During a challenging VOR-A approach, she experienced a breakdown in her instrument scan, lost situational awareness, made significant errors, and missed critical checklists, demonstrating the drug's impairing effects.
Despite recovering on a missed approach and successfully completing a familiar ILS approach under severe simulated conditions, the experience underscored that common OTC medications like NyQuil can significantly hinder pilot performance and safety, even beyond typical "bottle to throttle" timelines.

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The only thing I despise more than getting sick is taking medication that keeps me out of the airplane. I came home from EAA AirVenture with the flu, and for the better part of two weeks I was the poster girl for NyQuil, the popular over-the-counter (OTC) nighttime cold and flu medication.

Although NyQuil is approved per the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association database of FAA approved/disallowed medications, I’ve learned to give myself at least a week of nondosing before going back into the cockpit. I made this a rule after reading an aeromedical report that claimed pilots who ingest this kind medication within 72 hours of a flight are three times as likely to develop spatial disorientation than those who did not. Apparently the combination of acetaminophen (aspirin), dextromethorphan (cough suppressant), and doxylamine (sedating antihistamine) stays in your system a lot longer than the typical eight hours allotted for “bottle to throttle.”