FATIGUE IN AVIATION

Fatigue In Aviation

Fatigue In Aviation

The International Civil Aviation Organization determines fatigue as “a circumstance showing inadequate rest, as well as a collection of symptoms associated with displaced or disturbed biological rhythms” (CAA, 2002). Fatigue negatively impacts physical and mental processes such as muscular coordination, sensorial perception, response to stimuli, memory retrieval, decision making, situational awareness, motivation, error management, and adaptability.Phenomena occurring due to fatigue such as sleep inertia and microsleeps represent a major threat to flight safety (De Landre et al., 2002). It is widely acknowledged that pilot fatigue has a significant impact on accident rates increasing the probability of aviation accidents. It has been cited as probable cause in notorious cases. (Kandelaars et.el, 2005)

Figure: Cockpit view - visual displays, controls, and instrument clusters

Figure 1The WVU 6-DOF flight simulator system

Flight attendants are the cabin crew, required by law to be hired and trained by the airlines to ensure the security and safety of air travelers. Their training ranges from first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and defibrillation to in-flight firefighting and surviving in the sea or ice. Flight attendants also provide routine in-flight customer services, such as distributing food and drink, making passengers as comfortable as possible. This is a female-dominated occupation; men represent only 10-20 percent of the total work force. Wages and benefits vary among airlines. According to latest data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for flight attendants in the United States was $35,930 in May 2008 compared with $43,140 in 2002 and $38,820 in 2000. (Goode, 2003)

In 1922, the British-based Daimler Airway hired the world's first stewards to weigh and load mail and passengers. These “cabin boys” began to be replaced by female cabin crews in 1930, when Ellen Church, an American registered nurse, persuaded the managers of Boeing Air Transport (later United Airlines) that nurses were well qualified to take care of air travelers' welfare. Church thus became one of the “Original Eight”-the world's first female flight attendants, or stewardesses. In the beginning, the requirements for stewardesses were strict: In addition to being registered nurses, they had to be single, younger than 25 years, weigh less than 115 pounds, and be a maximum of 5'4” tall. The original physical qualifications reflected the early aircrafts' interior designs-low ceilings and narrow aisles, with maximum space allotted for mail and cargo-yet they also reinforced the image of stewardesses that endured for generations: pretty, slim, young “sky girls.”

In the post-World War II era, the aviation industry expanded dramatically, and the airlines dropped their requirement that flight attendants be registered nurses. Soon female flight attendants became the focus of airline marketing and an icon of popular culture. In the 1950s, stewardesses were depicted in American advertisements as “perfect wives”: young, attractive, modern women who were excellent at providing various services and caring for others. In the 1960s, both airline marketing and the media such as Life magazine displayed flight attendants as sexy “glamour girls.” The stewardesses on Japan Airlines dressed in kimonos and played geisha music as ...