About Flight Crew Fatigue

Fatigue Management for Cabin and Flight Crew

For safety and efficient operations, fatigue management for both cabin and flight crew is essential in any airline operation. Fatigue is a psychological condition marked by decreased mental and physical performance brought on by weariness and long workdays. Due to the hard nature of the job, the personnel may occasionally be strained above their physical limits. Currently, airline businesses must offer round-the-clock services to their customers due to competition and growing customer expectations. The cabin and flight crew become weary as a result, and flight safety is decreased. It can be challenging for airline corporations to increase crew productivity effectively without jeopardizing safety (Damos, Boyett, & Gibbs, 2013). The alertness of the cabin flight crew must be unwavering. A good number of accidents in the air industry are due to fatigued workers in their working hours.

Fatigue for pilots can be fatal. Slight sleep-related mistakes from pilots increase the chances of aircraft crashes. In the past, accidents like the Connie Kalitta Services flight in 1993 have occurred due to pilot fatigue.

Mitigation Measures

To reduce the chance of fatigue, the airline provides a balanced timing of flights together with expected scheduled duty roster to ensure the crew gets enough rest. Training is administered to the team to make them understand the different time zones and how to cope up with jetlag.

The flight crew is educated on the need of having enough sleep prior flight. Studies show that fatigue chances are improved by lack of enough sleep the day before a trip. Having enough sleep before a trip is essential to get the crew fit for the task ahead. Flight crew is also instructed not to take alcohol few hours before a trip. Mechanisms have been put in place to test the alcohol content of crew members before a flight.

During the flight, cockpit napping is encouraged to reenergize fatigued pilots. Studies show that those crews, which take short naps, have a sharper attention to detail when they wake up. Other alternative mitigation measures are having in-flight rosters to offer breaks to some of the attendants and crew to bunk sleep or nap to improve their mental state.

Fatigue Management for Flight Attendants

Flight attendants are known to work more extended hours with changing sleeping patterns; they are encouraged to take therapy sessions to manage their emotional state. Also, flight attendants are encouraged to find extra activities to reduce their boredom during the flight. Flight attendants are required to eat healthily and use caffeine appropriately during flight hours; this is vital in improving their physical and mental state.

The airline is focused on science-based fatigue training and management of crew. Currently, the airline operates on a fixed schedule for pilots and cabin crew to ensure efficient working hours and lengthy breaks to reduce flight risks. The innovation of technology to monitor pilot’s mental state is an effective one to track sleep and the psychological state of pilots during flights. This monitoring system has reduced the risk of accidents as the need for refreshing is noticed, and due to the accepted in flight roster, those crew members with higher risks are given priority (Signal, Ratieta, & Gander, 2008).

Conclusion

In conclusion, fatigue for flight crew is dangerous, and practical steps need to be taken to manage the situation and improve safety. Continuous training of flight crew on the importance of perfect mental state prior a flight needs to be emphasized. Airlines should also adopt new technologies to monitor the psychological state of their team before and during trips.

References

Damos, D.L., Boyett ,K.S., & Gibbs, P. (2013, April 8). Safety versus passenger service: The flight attendants’ dilemma. The International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 23(2), 91-112.

Ma, J., Ma, R.-M., Liu, X.-W., Bian, K., Wen, Z.-H., Li, X.-J., … Hu, W.D. (2014, February 5). Workload influence on fatigue related psychological and physiological performance changes of aviators. Plos Journals.

Signal, T.L., Ratieta, D., & Gander, P.H. (2008). Flight crew fatigue management in a more flexible regulatory environment: An overview of the New Zealand aviation industry. The Journal of Biological and Medical Rhythm Research, 25(2), 373-388.