ARE PILOTS AT RISK OF ACCIDENTS DUE TO FATIGUE?

In the aviation community, there is concern that pilot schedules can lead to fatigue and increased chance of an aviation accident. However, in spite of this concern, there is little empirical analysis showing the relationship between pilot schedules and commercial aviation accidents. This paper aims to demonstrate an empirical relationship between pilot schedules and aviation accidents. Data for human factors-related accident and pilot work patterns were identified. The distribution of pilot work schedule parameters for the accidents was compared to that for all pilots using a chi-square test to determine if proportions of accidents and length of duty exposure were the same. The proportion of accidents associated with pilots having longer duty periods is higher than the proportion of longer duty periods for all pilots. There is a discernible pattern of increased probability of an accident as duty time increases for commercial aircraft pilots in the U.S. The analysis suggests that establishing limits on duty time for commercial pilots would reduce risk.

Availability:
- Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/1800052
Corporate Authors:
Elsevier

360 Park Avenue South
New York, NY United States 10011-1710
Authors:
- Goode, J H
Publication Date: 2003

Language

English

Media Info

Features: Figures; References; Tables;
Pagination: p. 309-313
Serial:
- Journal of Safety Research
- Volume: 34
- Issue Number: 3
- Publisher: Elsevier
- ISSN: 0022-4375
- Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00224375

Subject/Index Terms

TRT Terms: Air pilots; Aircraft pilotage; Aviation safety; Civil aviation; Crash causes; Fatigue (Physiological condition); Flight time; Human factors in crashes; Risk analysis; Workload
Subject Areas: Aviation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

Accession Number: 00964500
Record Type: Publication
Files: TRIS
Created Date: Oct 7 2003 12:00AM