Venus, Marion; grosse Holtforth, Martin (2021). Short and Long Haul Pilots Rosters, Stress, Sleep Problems, Fatigue, Mental Health, and Well-Being. Aerospace medicine and human performance, 92(10), pp. 786-797. Aerospace Medical Association 10.3357/AMHP.5812.2021
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)OBJECTIVE: This research was conducted to compare short haul (SH) and long haul (LH) pilots regarding sleep restrictions and fatigue risks on flight duty, stress, sleep problems, fatigue severity, well-being, and mental health.
METHOD: There were 406 international SH and LH pilots who completed the cross-sectional online survey. Pilots sleep restrictions and fatigue-risk profiles (e.g., time pressure, late arrivals, minimum rest), sleep problems, fatigue severity, well-being, and symptoms of depression, anxiety, and common mental disorders (CMD) were measured and compared for SH and LH pilots.
RESULTS: Although SH and LH pilots were scheduled for only 51.465.4% of the legally allowed duty and flight hours, 44.8% of SH pilots reported severe fatigue (FSS 4 to 4.9), and an additional 31.7% high fatigue (FSS 5), compared with 34.7% and 37.3% LH pilots. Considerable sleep problems in 8 nights/mo were reported by 24.6% SH vs. 23.5% LH pilots. Positive depression screenings were reported by 18.1% SH and 19.3% LH pilots. Positive anxiety screenings were reported by 9.6% SH and 5% LH pilots. Of all investigated pilots, 20% reported significant symptoms of depression or anxiety, and 7.23% had positive depression and anxiety screenings. LH pilots reported significantly better well-being than SH pilots.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that even far less duty and flight hours than legally allowed according to flight time limitations lead to high levels of fatigue, sleep problems, and significant mental health issues among pilots. SH pilots were even more affected than LH pilots. Pilots fatigue should be considered an immediate threat to aviation safety and pilots fitness to fly by promoting fatigue and burnout.
Item Type: |
Journal Article (Original Article) |
|---|---|
Division/Institute: |
04 Faculty of Medicine > Department of Head Organs and Neurology (DKNS) > Clinic of Neurology > Centre of Competence for Psychosomatic Medicine |
UniBE Contributor: |
Grosse Holtforth, Martin |
Subjects: |
600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health |
ISSN: |
2375-6314 |
Publisher: |
Aerospace Medical Association |
Language: |
English |
Submitter: |
Annette Barbara Kocher |
Date Deposited: |
11 Nov 2021 10:14 |
Last Modified: |
05 Dec 2022 15:53 |
Publisher DOI: |
10.3357/AMHP.5812.2021 |
PubMed ID: |
34641999 |
URI: |
https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/160423 |
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