Det er vanskelig for undertegnede å forstå hvorfor disse særdeles viktige bestemmelsene er a) gjenstand for forhandligner mellom arbeidsgivere og flygerne, eller b) noe som trykkes ned halsen til flygerne om de vil eller ikke. Her har en mulighet til å etablere klare retningslinjer basert på et vitenskapelig fundament, men det gjør en ikke fordi det koster for mye.
Airline
pilots falling asleep in cockpit because of fatigue
Pilots have been
falling asleep in the cockpit because of shift patterns which can see them at
the controls of an aircraft 23 hours after waking up, a study has found.
The findings of a
study by Simon Bennett of Leicester University, has rekindled fears that
passenger safety could be put at risk by pilot fatigue.
While the Federal
Aviation Administration in the USA has tightened rules governing flying hours
following a crash in Buffalo, New York in which 50 people died, the European
Aviation Safety Agency is looking to relax British regulations to bring them
into line with other parts of the EU.
Two pilots
speaking to the Daily Telegraph on condition of anonymity, admitted they had
nodded off in the cockpit.
"It is
particularly bad on night flights when you have to be awake at a time when your
body wants to be asleep," he said.
"I have woken up
from a rest period to find my colleague asleep when he was supposed to be flying
the aircraft."
Another pilot who
has flown both intercontinental and short haul European flights, recalled
falling into what he described as a "microsleep."
He added:
"Everything was closing in, then you would awake with a jolt. You try to keep
awake by drinking stronger and stronger coffee."
Their experience
is commonplace according to Dr Bennett. "It is not unknown for pilots to
unintentionally fall asleep while operating," he said.
According to the
British Airline Pilots Association, the European proposals would increase the
number of hours flying crew could spend at work from 16 hours 15 minutes a day
to 20 hours.
The pilots' union
says the changes would water down Britain's safeguards, which are among the
strictest in Europe.
At the heart of
the debate is whether the time pilots spend getting to work should be taken into
account.
Dr Bennett, who
has been involved in aviation safety for more than a decade, believes it should.
He surveyed 433
pilots, with the help of the union, carrying out interviews and asking
volunteers to compile sleep logs.
He asked pilots
to include time they spent getting to the airport ahead of reporting for duty -
something which is not taken into account in existing or the proposed flying
hours regulations.
More than half
the pilots travelled at least an hour to get to the airport before starting
their shift.
These hours are
not taken into account when drawing up safety rules, even though it can mean
pilots are in control of an aircraft having had little sleep.
More than 50 per
cent of pilots have been in control of an aircraft after being awake for 23
hours according to an academic study. A fifth said they were flying 28 hours
after getting up.
Nearly eight per
cent of the pilots who participated in the study admitted they had been involved
in a road accident driving home at the end of their shift, Dr Bennett said.
One pilot who took
part in the study said he had "nodded off" over the Isle of Wight on his
approach to Gatwick.
"The reality is
that pilots commute huge distances to get to work and the same to get home. But
if I raise this in Westminster or in Europe, the response is that the airlines
are abiding by the rules."
Pilots reported
feeling groggy, dizzy, light-headed and confused because of the long days they
endured.
One described
feeling "Punch-drunk. Utterly exhausted. Incapacitated."
The pilot added:
"I checked straight into a hotel and didn't even drive home. The trouble with
long-haul flying is you simply cannot predict how tired you will be at the end
of a flight."
Louise Ellman,
the chairman of the all-party Transport Select Committee at Westminster, was
alarmed by the findings.
"This increases
concern that pilots are being asked to fly too long and gives added urgency for
the need to review these proposals," said
"The Government
should be more active in arguing for a better deal."
Simon Buck, chief
executive of the British Air Transport Association, which represents the
industry, declined to get involved in the debate.
"Flying time is a
matter for the UK Authorities and it is up to them to specify the measures which
are appropriate."
D
Et slikt Mi-26 helikopter skal etter planen redde et havarert Sea King-helikopter ned fra fjellet i Porsanger lørdag.
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