Dec 11
30
Pilot Fatigue Rules
New Pilot Fatigue Rules
Just recently released, the new FAA pilot fatigue rules for flight and duty time seemed like a landmark effort in the quest to improve flight safety. The rule change was instigated by the 2009 Colgan Air Flight 3407 crash near Buffalo New York which killed 50 people. Many of the pilot fatigue rules which regulate how long a pilot can be on duty for, and the minimum required rest time have not been updated since the 1960’s. A major overhaul of the rules was well and truly needed and was initially well received.
In my humble opinion, as welcome as the rule changes are they contain a major flaw which will create shockwaves throughout the airline industry until it is set right. While passenger airlines have been given two years to implement the new rules, cargo airlines are exempted altogether. They have been given a voluntary option so that if they choose to follow the new rules they can, but they are not legally required to do so. In their wisdom the FAA have decided that it is okay for cargo pilots to fly fatigued!!
Two Reasons Pilot Fatigue Rules will not be Implemented by Cargo Airlines
There are two reasons why cargo airlines will not implement the new pilot fatigue rules. Firstly if implemented, it would cost the cargo industry approximately 300 million dollars. What cargo airline on earth is going to spend massive amounts of money with no return on investment if they are not required to do so. To even suggest this is completely ridiculous. There is no way possible in todays economic climate where airlines are continuously cost cutting that a cargo airline will spend large amounts of money on added expenses if they don’t have to.
Secondly, has common sense been overridden by political pressure? Under what analysis were the FAA able to determine that a passenger pilot needs to have more rest than a cargo pilot? To say that a cargo pilot can be on duty for longer, and have less rest and still be safe to fly without fatigue is nothing short of a joke. What compounds the absurdity of this decision can be understood if we look at a comparison of the general flying times between passenger and cargo pilots. While the majority of passenger flights are conducted within daylight hours the majority of cargo flights are flown during the night.
Cargo pilots fly the majority of their duties at the back of the clock. While most people are in their beds asleep cargo pilots are struggling to stay awake at three or four in the morning. Nobody is at their peak mental capacity at four am, so even if a pilot has managed to get a good rest prior to going to work, it is still a struggle to maintain a high performance level. Compared to flying in the day, flying at night is more difficult as you have to overcome the body’s natural desire for sleep. If anything the pilot fatigue rules for cargo pilots should be stricter than they are for passenger pilots and not the other way round, which is what the FAA has just implemented.
About admin
I am an Aussie living and working in Japan as an Airline pilot. I fly Boeing B767's on international routes from Osaka and Narita on both passenger and freight operations.
I enjoy writing and try to update my Blog and FB Page on a daily basis.
