Waking Up to the Issues of Pilot Fatigue: Part One

NYCAviation:

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Waking Up to the Issues of Pilot Fatigue: Part One

NYCAviation explores significant changes in 2014 in how the FAA and airlines address -- and conquer -- the problem of pilot fatigue.http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/nycav...~4/GMEAkGtfrFo
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Unfortunately, for most long-haul international pilots flying tired is just part of the job. "Backside of the clock" flying is really tough on the body; there's no good way around not being tired after taking off anywhere between 8PM and 4AM local time, flying 8+ hours (usually over the ocean or middle of nowhere) and doing it for several days in a row. I read something a while back that said the life-expectancy of long-haul cargo pilots is something like 5 to 10 years less than pilots who fly only passengers around usually at more reasonable hours.
My last couple overseas trips show times have been anywhere between 1145PM and 3AM (EST). Hard not to fly tired when you're waking up at the time you normally get to bed...