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karatecatman · Guest

TIMES OF INDIA
Pilots seek Indian study on fatigue
Manju V
TNN
29 October 2009

MUMBAI: Cockpit crew fatigue and its effects on air safety have been one of the most researched subjects in the aviation sector worldwide. India,
though, has not yet conducted any indigenous scientific study on this crucial aspect of flying.

Taking that into account, the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG), the recognised union of Air India (international) pilots, on Wednesday requested the DGCA to commission a scientific study on pilot fatigue in the Indian context.

The pilots union have also offered partial funding for the project if the government faces budgetary constraints, a first for the country. The IPG pilots - the only ones in India who operate 16-17 hour ultra-long haul flights - have even offered to be guinea pigs for the study. The union cited the examples of Qantas and Air New Zealand where pilots volunteered to be subjects of fatigue studies.

The matter came to the fore as the DGCA had, in the last few weeks, sought suggestions on cockpit crew rest rules or Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) from airlines and pilots unions. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) had early this year set a deadline of November 19 for countries to change to scientifically-backed FDTL. Many countries, including India, do not follow science-based work-rest schedules for pilots. Currently, India follows a cockpit crew work-rest pattern formulated in 1992. The DGCA had brought into effect scientifically worked-out rest rules in 2007 only to roll them back following pressure from airlines. Now, with the ICAO stepping in, the DGCA has been taking a relook at the FDTL rules currently followed in India and has started meeting pilots unions and airlines to work out a solution before the deadline.

According to the IPG, the country needs to consider the long-term and commission a comprehensive study (which could take 4-5 years or more), which could be conducted by independent bodies such as the Indian Air Force medical establishments using doctors who are aviation medicine specialists. "Some of the factors that necessitate a scientific study in India are the genetic predisposition of Indian pilots and the cultural differences between flight crew,'' said an IPG spokesperson. The fact that Indian regulations permit pilots to fly up to 65 years of age, the geographical location of India, regional weather conditions, poor quality of navigation aids, the relative inexperience of newly recruited co-pilots who fly sophisticated jets, various psychosocial requirements, the commercial pressures of airline operators are all reasons for a study in India, the spokesperson added.

IPG said that while lessons from the critical studies done by NASA and other organisations on pilot fatigue should be used to frame the scientifically-based FDTL rules in India, the Indian perspective should also be factored in.