Significance of time awake for predicting pilots' fatigue on short‐haul flights: implications for flight duty time regulations
2014
European regulations restrict the duration of the maximum daily flight
duty period for pilots as a function of the duty start time and the number of
scheduled flights. However, late duty end times that may include long
times awake are not specifically regulated. In this study, fatigue levels in
pilots finishing their duty late at night (00:00–01:59 hour) were analysed
and compared with pilots starting their duty early (05:00–06:59 hour).
Fatigue levels of 40 commercial short-haul pilots were studied during a
total of 188 flight duty periods, of which 87 started early and 22 finished
late. Pilots used a small handheld computer to maintain a duty and sleep
log, and to indicate fatigue levels immediately after each flight. Sleep logs
were checked with actigraphy. Pilots on late-finishing flight duty periods
were more fatigued at the end of their duty than pilots on early-starting
flight duty periods, despite the fact that preceding sleep duration was
longer by 1.1 h. Linear mixed-model regression identified time awake as
a preeminent factor predicting fatigue. Workload had a minor effect.
Pilots on late-finishing flight duty periods were awake longer by an
average of 5.5 h (6.6 versus 1.1 h) before commencing their duty than
pilots who started early in the morning. Late-finishing flights were
associated with long times awake at a time when the circadian system
stops promoting alertness, and an increased, previously underestimated
fatigue risk. Based on these findings, flight duty limitations should
consider not only duty start time, but also the time of the final landing.
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