Fighting for safer fatigue rules -Curt Lewis

Pilots fight for better fatigue management for sake of air safety

INADEQUATE pilot fatigue regulations have led to a situation where the same pilots are being used to fly from Sydney to Perth and back again in less than a day.

The Australian Federation of Air Pilots is leading the charge to improve conditions, and has urged the Civil Aviation Safety Authority to get tough on the issue.

Despite introducing new regulations for pilot fatigue in 2013, the implementation by existing operators has been held up by a pending external review.

AFAP president David Booth said delaying the new guidelines was "bad news for air safety, bad news for the travelling public and bad news for pilots".

"The only way to manage pilot fatigue is by providing pilots with decent rosters that are not unduly fatiguing," said Captain Booth.

"Safe rosters cost money. Many airlines are run by business professionals who do not understand pilot fatigue but do understand cost control."


Passengers count on pilots being very much awake and alert when on the job. Picture: Thinkstock
The AFAP is currently surveying pilots in partnership with the University of New South Wales to get a true picture of the situation in Australia.

One captain responded that one of the toughest rosters involved flying Sydney to Perth from 9.50pm (AEST) to 2.25am (AEST), then returning to depart Perth at 4am (AEST) for an 8.15am arrival in Sydney.

"No (fatigue management) strategies used by the company other than "fly fast to stay within the exemption prescriptive limits"," said the captain who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

"The company is supposed to monitor the controlled rest taken but doesn't."

Those flying from Cairns to Perth and back worked a similar shift from 6.55pm to 6.05am the next morning.

Sydney-Darwin return was another route undertaken by the one flight crew, as was Bangkok to Melbourne with a total flight duty period (including pre and post flight paperwork) of 14 hours and 40-minutes.


No one wants to think their pilots are struggling to stay awake on the job. Picture: Thinkstock
Under current pilot fatigue rules, pilots can be expected to perform 14-hour shifts, although this may be extended to 16-hours in certain circumstances.

In comparison, heavy vehicle drivers are restricted to 12 to 14-hours in a 24-hour period.

New regulations would require airlines to develop fatigue risk management strategies for pilots, limit flying hours in some cases and identify ways to improve the quality of rest breaks.

The main opponent to the new rules is the Regional Aviation Association of Australia, which has 92 ordinary and affiliate members.

In a submission to CASE, RAAA chairman Jim Davis said there was "no need for Australia to have such punitive regulations".

"(There is) not sufficient evidence to justify such changes," wrote Mr Davis.

CASE spokeswoman Amanda Palmer said feedback from industry had delayed the new rules, although some operators had chosen to adopt them.

"The fatigue changes seek to align Australia with international standards, improve safety, and address known risks," said Ms Palmer.

"We recently announced our intention to extend the transition period by a further six months to enable sufficient time for an independent review of the fatigue rules to be carried out and recommendations to be considered."