Fly My Byte

Recently, pilots from 36 countries protested that European Parliament and European Commission are risking the lives of passengers and staff by making pilots fly for long hours, which is leading to their fatigue.

European airports will see a demonstration staged by pilots and cabin crew as they plan to raise this issue in the European Parliament in Brussels. They are challenging the current regulations that force pilots to fly for long hours at a stretch. They have even cited a research finding that states 15% of air accidents are caused by fatigue.

The pilots are upset, as European officials are not showing any interest in implementing stricter rules despite the Moebus report recommending legislative change on safety grounds. They are equally concerned over the new guidelines being set up by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which may supplant individual national regulations.

However, current EU regulations and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in Britain have laid out minimum safety standards for avoiding pilot fatigue, and many national authorities have imposed their own stricter rules.

The EASA has acknowledged the findings of the Moebus report and said it is considering the suggestions made in the report.

British pilots are expected to join in the demonstration across the continent, though they are not allowed to participate in any such organized protest. They will be handing out fake boarding passes with detailed information on crew fatigue and with stated reasons for their demand to change the existing EU laws. The design of the passes will be similar to cigarette-style health-warnings.

The British Airline Pilots Association General Secretary Jim McAuslan says that pilots are exposed to long flying hours in different time zones and have early morning duties, and their shifts end late in the nights. This adversely affects the pilot’s body, which can only be understood by fatigue experts.

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 5:11 am and is filed under Business Affairs, Health Hub, Lawyers Network. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.