Aviation

One More Leg… The Commuter Pilot’s Conumdrum

"I had an 11.6 hour duty day with 8 legs. That night I had a reduced rest scheduled to exactly 8 hours. On the second day we were scheduled for 6.3 hours of duty with 5 legs. Both my F/O and myself awoke the next morning still feeling very fatigued and sleepy. On the last leg of the day, my F/O was flying as we were descending into the airport area for the approach. I fell asleep for about one minute and woke up so disoriented that for 500 feet I watched the altimeter unwind and wondered why we were climbing. This is not the first such incident. I have had altitude busts, missed checklist items, etc., following reduced rests." (ACN 203509)

* "Common in commuter flying are long duty days, multiple legs and low level IFR in very congested airspace...By the fourteenth hour and tenth leg of 200 [foot ceiling] and 1/2 [mile visibility] all day, with reduced rest ahead of you, neither pilot really gives a damn. Safe? Of course not. Everyday reality? Unfortunately, yes." (ACN 168469)

ASRS receives many reports from pilots of commuter aircraft alleging that fatigue induced by long duty schedules, compounded by inadequate rest, is often a primary factor in aviation safety incidents.[Endnote 1]

Major Carrier or Commuter?

Major air carriers and commuter operators tend to serve different segments of the air transport market. Major carriers usually operate larger aircraft over greater distances, while commuter carriers operate smaller aircraft over short, regional route structures with greater frequency of service. Each are governed by different provisions of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs). Part 121 of the FARs applies to aircraft of more than 30 seats operated in scheduled commercial air service, while in this review we examine FAR Part 135 as it applies to aircraft of 30 seats or less operated in scheduled commercial air service with two pilots.

Duty Time Requirements

Many of the rules and flight duty...