Rabin Cone Contrast Testing for FAA Color Vision Screening

The Rabin Cone Contrast Test, abbreviated RCCT or Rabin CCT, is a computerized color vision test that measures the contrast sensitivity of each of your three cone types. Colored letters appear on a calibrated background and become progressively harder to see. The faintest level you can reliably read sets your score for that cone pathway, from 0 to 100, in each eye separately. The result is a set of numbers rather than a simple pass or fail.

Yes. The FAA Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners lists the Rabin Cone Test (RCCT), Air Force/Army/Navy/Coast Guard version, as one of the approved computer-based color vision tests for pilot medical certification screening. The other two currently listed are the Colour Assessment and Diagnosis (CAD) test and the Waggoner Computerized Color Vision Test.

Rabin Cone Contrast Testing is $150 at Everyday Eye Care. That price covers testing of both eyes, your red, green and blue cone measurements, the official computer-generated report and a brief explanation of your results.

Yes. An official computer-generated Rabin Cone Contrast Test report is included, showing your quantitative scores for each eye. There is no separate charge for the report.

It is not required, but we highly recommend it. A comprehensive eye examination is not mandatory for standalone FAA or occupational Rabin Cone Contrast Testing and we are glad to perform the color vision test on its own, but our doctors recommend booking both in the same visit. FAA medical certification includes distant and near visual acuity standards in addition to color vision, and if a vision standard is not met the FAA asks for a detailed clinical progress note from an optometrist or ophthalmologist, which is what a comprehensive examination produces. A full exam also confirms you are in the correct prescription for testing and investigates any abnormal color result. It is scheduled and charged separately from the $150 test, and we can usually do both in one visit if you mention it when you call.

The FAA requires a score of 55 or higher for each color, red, green and blue, with each eye tested separately. Every individual score must meet the threshold. A strong score in one color does not make up for a lower score in another. The staircase version of the test is permitted under the FAA protocol. Standards can change, so confirm current requirements with your Aviation Medical Examiner.

Yes. The test is monocular, meaning each eye is tested on its own. This is what the FAA protocol requires, and it is also what allows a one-sided problem to be detected that a both-eyes-open screening could miss.

Plan on roughly 10 minutes of testing. The measurement itself runs only a few minutes per eye, and the rest of the visit is check in, making sure you are in the right correction for the test distance, and going over your report.

No. Since January 1, 2025 the FAA requires approved computer-based color vision testing to be performed in person, and states that virtual, downloaded and printed versions of color vision tests are prohibited. The test also depends on a calibrated display, so an online or phone version cannot reproduce it accurately regardless of the rule.

Please bring a government-issued photo ID when testing is being performed for aviation, employment, licensing or another official requirement. It lets us correctly identify the report that goes to your examiner or employer.

Yes, and the FAA anticipates exactly this. The FAA AME guidance states that if an Aviation Medical Examiner does not have one of the approved computer-based tests, the applicant can be tested at a different location, and that the testing physician or clinic provides the AME with the color vision printout for upload. You take your official report to your AME.

No. Everyday Eye Care performs the color vision testing and provides your official report. Aviation medical certificates are issued by an Aviation Medical Examiner, and the FAA determines medical certification eligibility. We are not acting as your AME.

Call the office nearest you: Pasco (509) 543-7953, Sunnyside (509) 839-4575, or Hermiston (541) 567-5283. Rabin testing is scheduled by phone rather than through our online booking, because we reserve a specific appointment slot and set up the test equipment for it. Tell us it is for Rabin Cone Contrast Testing and whether it is for FAA, occupational or medical reasons so we can allow the right amount of time.

All three Everyday Eye Care offices are located inside Walmart: Pasco at 4820 N Rd 68, Sunnyside at 2675 E Lincoln Ave, and Hermiston at 1350 N 1st St. There is free parking at all three, and you can combine your appointment with a regular shopping trip.

No referral is required to be seen at Everyday Eye Care, unless your own program, employer or licensing body requires one. We also welcome referrals from Aviation Medical Examiners, optometrists, ophthalmologists and other physicians who need quantitative color vision data for a patient.

Your report shows your actual scores either way. What happens next is a certification question, and that belongs to your Aviation Medical Examiner and the FAA, not to us. The FAA has defined pathways that your AME can walk you through. Bring your report to that conversation and ask your AME about your options.

Repeat testing is possible, and each additional testing session is a separate appointment with a separate fee. The $150 covers one testing session and does not include unlimited retesting. Repeat testing does not change how certification decisions are made.

No. Under current FAA guidance, computer-based color vision screening is a one-time screening. The FAA guidance also states that a returning pilot who historically passed a previously FAA-approved color vision test does not need the computer-based test. If you take a medication or have a condition that can affect color vision, additional testing may be required separately.

Ishihara plates are an established clinical screening tool that generally give a pass or fail result and focus on red-green deficiencies. The Rabin Cone Contrast Test is computerized and quantitative, producing numeric scores for the red, green and blue cone pathways in each eye separately. Ishihara plates remain useful for general clinical screening. The distinction that matters for pilots is that FAA screening now requires an approved computer-based test.

Yes. It measures the short wavelength (S) cone pathway, which is the blue-yellow pathway, alongside the long (L, red) and medium (M, green) pathways. Blue-yellow changes are more often acquired than inherited, and many traditional red-green screening tools are not designed to pick them up.

It can quantify color vision function and identify abnormal patterns that may warrant further clinical evaluation, but it does not by itself diagnose any disease. Changes affecting multiple cone pathways, a meaningful difference between your two eyes, or a change from your previous scores may prompt our doctors to recommend further evaluation. Any diagnosis comes from a full clinical examination, not from the color vision score alone.

No. Current FAA guidance states that color vision correcting lenses, such as X-Chrom, are not acceptable to the FAA as a means of correcting a pilot color vision deficiency.

Everyday Eye Care provides Rabin Cone Contrast Testing at our Pasco and Sunnyside, Washington locations, both inside Walmart. Rabin testing is a specialized service and may not be available at every eye clinic in the state, so pilots and other patients travelling from elsewhere in Washington are welcome to schedule with us. Call the office you plan to visit before travelling: Pasco (509) 543-7953 or Sunnyside (509) 839-4575.

Everyday Eye Care provides Rabin Cone Contrast Testing at our Hermiston, Oregon location, inside Walmart just off I-84. Pilots and other patients from throughout Oregon are welcome to schedule testing there. Call our Hermiston office at (541) 567-5283 before travelling so we can reserve the right testing time.

Yes. You do not need to live locally. Pilots and other patients from throughout Washington, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest may schedule Rabin Cone Contrast Testing at any of our three testing locations. Please call ahead rather than dropping in, because testing is scheduled by phone and we want the equipment and time reserved for you when you arrive.

Our Pasco office at 4820 N Rd 68, inside Walmart, is the closest location for Pasco, Kennewick, Richland, West Richland and the surrounding Tri-Cities area. Call (509) 543-7953 to schedule.

Our Sunnyside office at 2675 E Lincoln Ave, inside Walmart, is the closest location for the lower Yakima Valley, including Grandview, Prosser, Toppenish and Zillah. Call (509) 839-4575 to schedule.

Our Hermiston office at 1350 N 1st St, inside Walmart, serves Hermiston, Umatilla, Boardman, Stanfield, Pendleton and the surrounding Eastern Oregon communities. Call (541) 567-5283 to schedule.