Sleeping and transportation - mandatory rules/testing? Sleep activists talk
The recent news story of an airliner that missed its landing and continued on autopilot for an additional 1 1/2 hrs may sound incredible, but it's not the first time landings have been missed. Whether or not these pilots were simply so engaged in their discussion that they forgot to land the plane as they say, or whether speculators are correct in their assumptions that the pilots were asleep at the wheel, at least the incident has brought to light practices which some feel are dangerous.
While the general public assumes that piloting an aircraft is virtually the same as driving a car, let me assure you - it is not! Granted, there are often hours of boredom punctuated by moments of chaos, however the energy a pilot expends when actively flying the plane is far beyond what most people have ever experienced. Every sense is finely tuned and trained. Reflexes are honed until they are automatic. There is no margin for error when you are in the air, and mental fatigue is often even more profound than the physical stress of flying. You cannot simply put on the brake and coast to a stop if something goes wrong. That's why there are so many rules in aviation, and so many redundancies and restrictions.
For all the rules and procedures commercial pilots must follow, there are currently none that govern how or when they sleep during a flight. That pilots need sleep during long flights is obvious - for their health and the health of passengers and the public. Mandatory and scheduled sleep/rest time would allow both pilots and co-pilots to prepare mentally and physically for the flight ahead, knowing when their "off time" would be coming. Perhaps it might also encourage sleep deprived pilots who aren't sleeping to get a little shut-eye as well.
Sleep deprivation is dangerous when you're a pedestrian, let alone when you have 2-300 passengers depending on you for safety. Driving a car while sleep deprived is virtually the same as driving while intoxicated, perhaps even worse. We don't want our pilots 'intoxicated' from sleep deprivation!
Do you have pilots actively participating in your sleep communities? What do they think about the recent error in Minnesota? What do you think about allowing pilots to sleep on the job, while the plane is in the air? Have you ever driven while sleep deprived?
Sleep activist Dr Stephen Y Park blogged recently about mandatory sleep apnea screening for everyone. He cites the recent Hawaiian airliner incident in which both pilots dozed past their landing by 18 minutes. One of the pilots was later found to suffer obstructive sleep apnea which may have resulted in fatigue and sleep deprivation. He goes beyond that to remind readers that accidents on the ground happen regularly to sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea, and asks "Should sleep apnea testing be mandatory for everyone?" He cites some pretty convincing facts and figures to back up his opinion.
Do you think that sleep apnea testing should be mandatory to everyone? If you test positive for OSA, what should be the consequences? Mandatory treatment? Losing weight? Testing before driving or flying? Other options?
What are your communities saying about sleeping and flying/driving?
Related topic pages
Sleep Deprivation
Effects of sleep deprivation
While the general public assumes that piloting an aircraft is virtually the same as driving a car, let me assure you - it is not! Granted, there are often hours of boredom punctuated by moments of chaos, however the energy a pilot expends when actively flying the plane is far beyond what most people have ever experienced. Every sense is finely tuned and trained. Reflexes are honed until they are automatic. There is no margin for error when you are in the air, and mental fatigue is often even more profound than the physical stress of flying. You cannot simply put on the brake and coast to a stop if something goes wrong. That's why there are so many rules in aviation, and so many redundancies and restrictions.
For all the rules and procedures commercial pilots must follow, there are currently none that govern how or when they sleep during a flight. That pilots need sleep during long flights is obvious - for their health and the health of passengers and the public. Mandatory and scheduled sleep/rest time would allow both pilots and co-pilots to prepare mentally and physically for the flight ahead, knowing when their "off time" would be coming. Perhaps it might also encourage sleep deprived pilots who aren't sleeping to get a little shut-eye as well.
Sleep deprivation is dangerous when you're a pedestrian, let alone when you have 2-300 passengers depending on you for safety. Driving a car while sleep deprived is virtually the same as driving while intoxicated, perhaps even worse. We don't want our pilots 'intoxicated' from sleep deprivation!
Do you have pilots actively participating in your sleep communities? What do they think about the recent error in Minnesota? What do you think about allowing pilots to sleep on the job, while the plane is in the air? Have you ever driven while sleep deprived?
Sleep activist Dr Stephen Y Park blogged recently about mandatory sleep apnea screening for everyone. He cites the recent Hawaiian airliner incident in which both pilots dozed past their landing by 18 minutes. One of the pilots was later found to suffer obstructive sleep apnea which may have resulted in fatigue and sleep deprivation. He goes beyond that to remind readers that accidents on the ground happen regularly to sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea, and asks "Should sleep apnea testing be mandatory for everyone?" He cites some pretty convincing facts and figures to back up his opinion.
Do you think that sleep apnea testing should be mandatory to everyone? If you test positive for OSA, what should be the consequences? Mandatory treatment? Losing weight? Testing before driving or flying? Other options?
What are your communities saying about sleeping and flying/driving?
Related topic pages
Sleep Deprivation
Effects of sleep deprivation
Tags: apnea, obstructive sleep apnea, osa, pilots, sleep
Comment
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Comment by Ellen S on October 27, 2009 at 5:48pm -
Sarah, interesting questions! Yes, there is a vision requirement for pilots. Let me explain:
If you have a pilot's license, you must have a special full medical examination by a doctor that is specially trained in giving the examination, which basically is an extremely in-depth physical and questionnaire.
**If you are a private pilot, the exams must be done at least every 3 years until you reach the age of 40 yrs. After that the exam must be passed every other year.
**If you have a commercial pilot's license, the exam is done yearly.
**If you are a commercial pilot who flies airliners, the exam must be passed twice yearly.
The eyesight qualification is: correctable vision to 20/30 for private pilots, and 20/20 for commercial pilots. Most tests are done using only an eye chart, but some doctors will use more specialized equipment for eyesight testing.
There are some waivers in which a pilot may become licensed with extenuating circumstances. For instance, a family acquaintance had only one eye, which would normally not be allowed. He received a special waiver however because he was able to pass all his testing etc despite his minor disability. In other words, he was missing an eye, but could fly the same as other pilots under the same rigorous standards. He was restricted to carry only a private pilots license however, and was not eligible for anything more.
Cockpit fatigue and apnea has been an FAA concern recently, so I interviewed a commercial pilot/instructor for some basic answers. The discussion was so interesting I decided to blog about it, so if you're intrigued as I was about the details of cockpit fatigue, the new apnea restrictions, and the licensing of pilots, please follow me to Part 2 of the discussion and the pilot's point of view.
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Comment by Sarah on October 26, 2009 at 2:59pm - Ellen, do you know if pilots have a vision requirement? At one point I thought that they did - and it was for a very reason like this. I wonder if there could ever be a restriction against OSA for pilots - without proof they were "cured" or treated well enough to fly, they wouldn't be able to get their license. I think it might be a good idea however involved it might be. I could see the airlines balking at it because of costs or something (because I can bet you that the pilots who are already flying and needed to be certified OSA-free wouldn't want to pay for the "certification" themselves) though so we'll see if it ever gets anywhere.
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