Thursday, April 12, 2007

Fatigue in air traffic controllers: NTSB recommendations

ATCEarlier this week, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), issued several formal Safety Recommendations to address the issue of fatigue in air traffic controllers.

In the first recommendation (A-07-30), the NTSB asks the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to work with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), the union representing the controllers, "to reduce the potential for controller fatigue by revising controller work-scheduling policies and practices to provide rest periods that are long enough for controllers to obtain sufficient restorative sleep and by modifying shift rotations to minimize disrupted sleep patterns, accumulation of sleep debt, and decreased cognitive performance. "

The second recommendation (A-07-31), also directed at the FAA, asks the agency to develop a fatigue awareness and countermeasures training program for controllers, and for those involved in the scheduling of controllers for operational duty, that will address "the incidence of fatigue in the controller workforce, causes of fatigue, effects of fatigue on controller performance and safety, and the importance of using personal strategies to minimize fatigue."

The NTSB recommends that this training be provided in a format that promotes retention, and
that recurrent training should be provided at regular intervals.

The third recommendation (A-07-32) is directed to NATCA. It asks that the union work with the FAA to reduce the potential for controller fatigue "by revising controller work-scheduling policies and practices to provide rest periods that are long enough for controllers to obtain
sufficient restorative sleep and by modifying shift rotations to minimize disrupted sleep patterns, accumulation of sleep debt, and decreased cognitive performance. "

Click here for a printable ('pdf') copy of NTSB Safety Recommendations A-07-30 thru 32, mentioned above. The document is 11 pages long, but definitely is worth reading. As background, it reviews four runway incursions that the NTSB says highlight the impact fatigue can have on controller performance.

The document then goes on to review controller scheduling policies and practices; recent FAA research on controller shiftwork and fatigue; and findings regarding the awareness of fatigue-related issues in the air traffic organization.

This is such an important issue. Now it is up to the FAA and NATCA to cooperate in implementing these recommendations.

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