Small air operators tell Transport Canada they want special pilot fatigue rules
The National
Airlines Council Canada, representing Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat and Jazz
Aviation LP, supports updating the flight and duty times regulations to reflect
current sleep research.
OTTAWA - Smaller
air operations don't want a new proposal to combat pilot fatigue drafted by a
government-led group to apply to them.
Transport Canada's aviation regulatory advisory council met Tuesday to review recommendations of a special working group and organizations representing air taxis, small operators, business charters and helicopter companies complained the proposal is unworkable for them.
They run smaller operations and fly many unscheduled fights, often to remote locations, and called for Transport Canada to carve out special rules for them. The proposal should be used as a blueprint for large commercial carriers only, they said.
"It's one size fits all and flies in the face of the structure of the ," Fred Jones, president of the Helicopter Association of Canada, told the council.
"It is completely insufficient when it comes to other operations," added Bill Boucher of the Air Transport Association of Canada, representing smaller air operators.
Groups representing pilots urged the council Tuesday to reject these calls, saying all passengers deserve the same level of safety when they step on to an aircraft.
Canada's current regulations, drafted in 1965 and last updated in 1996, permit pilots to fly 14 hours in a 24-hour period. Unlike other countries, the rules in Canada do not take into account the latest sleep research and do not distinguish between daytime and overnight flying.
Transport Canada's aviation regulatory advisory council met Tuesday to review recommendations of a special working group and organizations representing air taxis, small operators, business charters and helicopter companies complained the proposal is unworkable for them.
They run smaller operations and fly many unscheduled fights, often to remote locations, and called for Transport Canada to carve out special rules for them. The proposal should be used as a blueprint for large commercial carriers only, they said.
"It's one size fits all and flies in the face of the structure of the ," Fred Jones, president of the Helicopter Association of Canada, told the council.
"It is completely insufficient when it comes to other operations," added Bill Boucher of the Air Transport Association of Canada, representing smaller air operators.
Groups representing pilots urged the council Tuesday to reject these calls, saying all passengers deserve the same level of safety when they step on to an aircraft.
Canada's current regulations, drafted in 1965 and last updated in 1996, permit pilots to fly 14 hours in a 24-hour period. Unlike other countries, the rules in Canada do not take into account the latest sleep research and do not distinguish between daytime and overnight flying.
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