Aviation

New federal regulation aims to battle airline pilot fatigue

The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday issued a final rule to address pilot fatigue among commercial airline pilots, which the agency said takes into account humans' natural circadian rhythms.

Among the most significant changes are limits on cumulative flight time in one-week and 28-day periods, single-flight-time limits depending on when a pilot begins his or her shift, and spreading the responsibility for pilot fatigue awareness between the pilot and the airline.

"Every pilot has a personal responsibility to arrive at work fit for duty. This new rule gives pilots enough time to get the rest they really need to safely get passengers to their destinations," said FAA Acting Administrator Michael Huerta, in announcing the new rule.

The rule, which affects all pilots working scheduled commercial flights -- what are known as part 121 in FAA jargon, differing from other forms of aviation like private flights and on-demand air taxi services, and perhaps most notably, cargo flights -- is presented in a more than 300-page document documenting each change and the reasons for it. The FAA sought public comment on the rule, which is also accounted for in the report.

Perhaps one of the most significant changes involves adapting the rules to accomodate the effects of jet lag and pilots' natural sleeping rhythms. To address this, pilots will now be limited to eight hour shifts for flights that begin between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m., with a nine-hour limit during the day. Additionally, the number of segments on a flight will affect how long a pilot can be on duty, to account for jet lag.

From the report:

The final rule recognizes the natural circadian rhythms experienced by most people that causes them to be naturally more tired at night than during the day. Under the final rule, flightcrew members will be able to work longer hours during the day than during the night. Significant changes in time zones, a situation unique to aviation, are accounted for to reduce the risk to the flying public posed by "jetlag".

ADVERTISEMENT

This helps offset what the FAA calls -- in a nursery rhyme meets bureaucratese sort of way --the "period of maximum sleepiness" that falls between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. each night.

The new rule also mandates that a pilot needs a period of at least 30 consecutive hours off in a given week, a 25 percent increase from the previous rule. Additionally, pilots, when checking in for what the FAA refers to as a Flight Duty Period (FDP), must sign a document stating that they don't feel fatigued. If the pilot reports any fatigue, the airline is then required to remove the pilot from duty.

National Transportation Safety Board chairwoman Deborah Hersman said that while the NTSB is pleased with the strides made with the new rule, the agency hoped that it would encompass more than part 121 carriers, and extend to other types of flights as well.

While this is not a perfect rule, it is a huge improvement over the status quo for large passenger-carrying operations. Yet, we are extremely disappointed that the new rule is limited to Part 121 carriers. A tired pilot is a tired pilot, whether there are 10 paying customers on board or 100, whether the payload is passengers or pallets. As the FAA said in its draft, "Fatigue threatens aviation safety because it increases the risk of pilot error that could lead to an accident." This is particularly a concern for crews that fly "on the back side of the clock."

The announcement of the final rule comes just days after the Alaska Congressional delegation wrote to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs asking for a status update on the proposed rule.

"Having well-rested flight crews is of the utmost importance," they wrote. "Please help us assure Alaskans and all Americans that they can continue to count on the safety of this important transportation mode in the most practical and cost-effective way."

The rule was first proposed in part as a response to the crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 in February of 2009 that killed 49 people. Pilot fatigue was found to be one of numerous factors leading to that crash, and resulted in numerous safety recommendations from the NTSB.

The new rule is a big one, and anyone interested in reading the full report can do so here. For a summary of the new rule and the changes from the previous rule, click here.

Contact Ben Anderson at ben(at)alaskadispatch.com

Ben Anderson

Ben Anderson is a former writer and editor for Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2017.

ADVERTISEMENT