A 2009 airplane crash in Buffalo, N.Y., spurred the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to tighten regulations regarding pilot fatigue. All 49 passengers and one person on the ground perished when Colgan Air Flight 3407 slammed into a house last year in February. Investigators determined that pilot fatigue could have played a part in the disaster. Both the pilot and co-pilot had traveled a considerable distance before taking off from a New Jersey airport — commuting from Florida and Washington state, respectively.
In September 2010, the FAA proposed amending regulations to change the amount of mandatory rest pilots must have between flights. Presently, the rules require only eight hours of rest. The proposed regulations would require nine hours of rest between assignments and reduce the maximum shift a pilot can work to 15 hours.
Under the new regulations, a pilot's time in the cockpit could be decreased based upon the time of day, time zones and the amount of sleep a pilot has had. Pilots will also have the right to decline an assignment, without penalty, if fatigued.
Experts report that fatigue can adversely affect a pilot's performance. Response time and situational awareness are degraded by fatigue. Similarities have been drawn between the effects of fatigue and alcohol. The FAA proposed amendments to the mandatory rest requirements in the late 1990s, but no action was taken on the prior proposals.
FAA officials noted that the new proposals have been in the works for the past 15 months.
