[2023 National Audit] Air Force Soldiers Suffering from Hearing Loss

Analysis of Air Force Audit Data by National Defense Committee Member Song Gap-seok
Over 800 Cases of Hearing Test Abnormalities in the Past 3 Years

It has been revealed that hearing damage among soldiers working at Air Force airbases is severe. There are concerns that personnel avoid hearing tests due to worries about job transfers, and even when diagnosed with hearing abnormalities, there are no special treatment measures, highlighting the urgent need for countermeasures.

According to the guidance signals, the F-5E/F is heading toward the runway.

According to the Air Force on the 23rd, personnel working in noise-exposed departments around the runways of each airbase are required to undergo a hearing test once a year through the medical unit. If an abnormal diagnosis is made, a detailed examination must be conducted at the Aerospace Medical Center to determine whether noise-induced hearing loss is present. The problem is that when hearing loss is diagnosed, long-term service and job transfers become inevitable, causing those subject to hearing tests to avoid the examinations.

According to the “Hearing Test Status of Air Force Airbase Noise Department Personnel in the Last 3 Years (2020?2022)” submitted by the Air Force to Song Gap-seok, a member of the National Assembly’s Defense Committee, a total of 802 people were notified of abnormal results at the airbase medical units over the past three years. Although they were supposed to undergo detailed examinations at the Aerospace Medical Center, 392 people (49%) did not take the tests.

In 2020, among the 166 people who underwent detailed examinations, 88% showed abnormal findings (116 people) or suspected abnormalities (30 people). The following year, among 205 people who underwent detailed examinations, there were also abnormal findings (144 people) and suspected abnormalities (33 people).

Assemblyman Song said, “Measures should be established to reduce disadvantages for those diagnosed with hearing loss so that personnel working in noise-exposed departments at airbases can comply with detailed examinations.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.