Crew Schedules, Sleep Deprivation, and Aviation Performance

Abstract

Recent events have highlighted the importance of pilot fatigue in aviation operations. Because of demanding flight schedules, crew members often suffer disrupted sleep and desynchronized circadian rhythms, the combination of which threatens alertness and performance. Unfortunately, market requirements for transcontinental and transoceanic routes, as well as for nighttime departures and early-morning arrivals, continue to pose challenges to human vigilance in flight. However, regulatory attention to the physiological causes of fatigue, new techniques for schedule optimization, advanced sleep-monitoring technology, and behavioral strategies to counter fatigue will go a long way toward managing fatigue-related risks in operational contexts.