Sleep Well on an Adjustable Bed






by Lauren Russ


In December, the Federal Aviation Administration passed a ruling that will demand commercial passenger airlines to limit the quantity of time that pilots are allowed to fly. For decades, safety advocacy groups have been urging the FAA to update its rules on pilot perform schedules. Past efforts have failed, largely simply because airlines and pilot unions could not agree on changes to pilot work schedules. But the new FAA ruling passed, giving pilots much more time to rest amongst flights.

The FAA named the new ruling a "key safety achievement," and it passed in huge element due to the passionate and constant lobbying of the households of the people who died when Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crashed into a house just 5 minutes short of Buffalo-Niagara International Airport in February 2009. Following a National Transportation Safety Board investigation, the board discovered that the accident was due in part to pilot fatigue.

Components of the new FAA ruling include:The length of time a pilot is allowed to fly depends on when the pilot's day begins, and the number of flight segments he or she is expected to fly, and ranges from nine to 14 hours for single crew operations.

Flight time when the plane is moving beneath its personal power before, during or after flight is restricted to eight or nine hours, based on the start off time of the pilot's whole flight duty period. Pilots must have a 10-hour minimum rest period prior to the flight duty period - a two-hour boost over the old rules. The new rule needs that pilots have an opportunity for eight hours of uninterrupted sleep within the 10-hour rest period.

The rule also locations 28-day and annual limits on a pilots flight time. It also requires that pilots have at least 30 consecutive hours totally free from duty on a weekly basis, a 25 percent improve over the old rules. The FAA expects pilots and airlines to operate together to determine if a pilot is fit for duty, or not. Ahead of any flight, a pilot is necessary to affirmatively state that he or she is fit for duty.




About the Author: