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Wearing Hearing Aids with Aviation Over-The-Ear Headset

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I have been wearing ’s for 20+ years - 10 year old Widex and Oticon . I am a pilot and fly my airplane with Active Noise Reduction headset while still wearing the HA’s. I get feedback with the Oticon BTE. I’m now investigating new HA’s and trying to find solution for feedback when wearing headset over the ears. I will need BTE for severe / profound hearing loss.

Do you think newest model HA with feedback reduction algorithm will help this problem? What about custom earmold with small or no vent hole? I’m also thinking about direct streaming the aircraft avionics and intercom directly to the HA’s via Bluetooth but don’t know how to to iPhone and aircraft at same time. Perhaps shut off iPhone and allow connect to aircraft only, but that is a lot of fooling around.

Any ideas / experience appreciated…

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Most modern hearing aids with the correct acoustics and fitted properly should not have feedback issues. Some manufacturers might be better than others, we all have our favorites.

Pending on your phone and other Bluetooth devices different hearing aids might be better for you. Phone wise this is Apple products and Android products. Some hearing aids stream either well, others don’t.

As far as your aircraft avionics you would need to know what type Bluetooth they use.

@strickjc said:

aircraft avionics and intercom

I hope you also asked on Pilots’ forums. You can’t be the first pilot juggling four headsets. Cockpit gear is alien to me; I may know a radio when I see it. but the ins and outs of interconnect is specialized.

I think the issue with aviation headsets is not significantly different that regular noise cancelling hearing aids. Obviously the issue is feedback. I have found that I can simply turn down the volume and make it work. However, I don’t do it often and I am sure turning down the volume is not the best solution.

Not sure what your ear mold is, but it would help if you have very small vents. There is also the alternative in modern hearing aids to create another program with more aggressive feedback control and use that channel when you use the headset. When you get new hearing aids, take your headset to the fitter and they can tune a channel to reduce feedback when you wear the headset,

One of the respondents suggested posting your . Good idea.

Being a pilot myself and also having had many patients who were pilots, you should be able to use the headsets without feed back. A special program as was suggested is a good idea as well as turning the volume down. You have a volume control on your headset or as part of the intercom so if you turn the aids down, you can turn the volume up. The new feedback reduction should be a big help all by itself. The main thing is to get the new hearing aids on a trial basis and if they don’t work and reprogramming does not do it, return the aids or try a different brand.

The plan now is to try hearing aids with program and have microphone turned off. This should prevent all feedback as mic will be inoperative. The Telecoil should sense the electrical field from the speaker coils in the headset ear cups just like when using Telecoil for handset on a land-line telephone. I have LightSpeed Zulu3 ANR aviation headset. Trial fitting for hearing aids will be in a few weeks. Audiologist will allow me to trial for several weeks so I can test in the airplane.

You are on go. A program for the headset will work. If the headset works with , that is a great approach. As gorgeguy said, if it does not work, you don’t pay.

I use Oticon ’s and tested the Lightspeed Delta Zulu last month, but was disappointed. Thought the would improve transmit quality.

Just received a Bose 30. Expect to test this coming weekend.

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