Fatigue Monitoring in Scheduled Airline Operations

Reporting and monitoring are important facets of a comprehensive Fatigue Risk Management System. As part of efforts to reduce fatigue risks, we partnered with an international airline to study 44 (4 Female) volunteer pilots over a 4 week period that included baseline earlymiddaylate flight days and rest days off. All study procedures were approved by an IRB and participants provided written informed consent prior to beginning the study. Reduced sleep duration was associated with both early and late duties. Performance was influenced by duty timing, time of day and time awake. TLX ratings were highest for mental and effort demands, while ATC and weather were the most identified hassle factors. Melatonin analysis revealed individual variations in circadian shift over the study period. The study results highlight the value of FRMS monitoring in airline operations. Ongoing crew education should emphasize individual variation and effective mitigation strategies. Further study could focus on workload and time of day scheduling factors.