Brussels, 17/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 16 July new rules on flight working time and meals for airline pilots. This change has occurred with passengers barely noticing it but it is crucial for pilots who now have a harmonised framework requiring their employers to respect minimum standards and help prevent fatigue provoking risks to passenger safety. According to ECA (European Cockpit Association), despite a transition period of 18 months for member states and airlines to update their legislation, there has been little progress.
Introduced by regulation 1899/2006, flight limitation times (FLT) determine the maximum working time and rest period for pilots. Generally, a pilot's daily flying time cannot exceed 13 hours (under certain conditions it can be extended up to 14 or 15 hours). A 36 hour rest (including two nights in one place) should be programmed after a maximum of 168 hours of work. Each pilot should receive a roster from his employer or airline. It is the first time that these provisions have been set up at a European level. They are expected to establish minimum standards and harmonisation of the different national provisions (some are good some less so) on the subject and help reduce the impact of fatigue on pilot performance. According to ECA fatigue contributes to approximately 15%-20% of plane accidents caused by the human factor. Rather than increase standards, these provisions could do the opposite. In a press release published on 15 July, ECA deplored the fact that several member states (the Scandinavian countries, Lithuania and Spain: Ed) have used the introduction of European FTL rules as a pretext for downgrading their previous high safety standards to align their legislation on the European minimum. Other countries and their airlines, like Italy, did not manage to transpose their legislation in time and have asked for derogations until after the holidays. Finally, in contrast to what was done in the United Kingdom and some other countries, European standards have never been subject to scientific scrutiny and their impact on safety and pilot fatigue has never been demonstrated. The European agency for airline safety is currently doing this and its report is expected in the autumn. (A.By/trans/rh)