Should Cargo Carriers Be Exempt From The Newer Flight / Duty Changes?

Cargo Industry Exemption from Flight/Duty Changes

It is often said that many of the new or current rules in the aviation industry are written in blood. This is often said because a lot of the changes that come about are a result of accidents involving death. The Colgan Air crash in Buffalo, New York that killed 50 people on February 12, 2009, brought about many changes (Maxon 2011). The FAA instituted new flight/duty requirements following this crash as pilot fatigue was said to be a huge factor. I will discuss some of the major differences between the new rules and the old ones.

 For starters, flight/duty requirements will now be based on a variety of factors. These include what time the crew member starts their first flight, number of segments to fly and based on the number of time zones their travels take them across. This is all based on fatigue research (“Press Release” 2011). The previous rule had different rest requirements for domestic, flag and supplemental operations. The current rule makes it so there are no changes in rest requirements between operations (Houston 2016). There was a lack of concern for time zones and the time of day a pilot started their first flight on the previous set of rules.  Another big change was the requirement of a minimum of 10 hours of rest between duty periods. Of the 10 hours, 8 of those hours must be uninterrupted sleep. The previous minimum was 8 hours (“Press Release” 2011). Another big change to the regulations was the previous regulation had a vague interpretation of being “fit for duty (Houston 2016).” The new regulation requires the pilot to sign an agreement that they are fit for flight. According to Sarina Houston (2016), it's the carrier’s duty to remove the pilot if they report being fatigued and not “fit for flight.” In addition, a reserve pilot is required to get at least a 10-hour rest period. Previously, this was at least 24 hours off in a 7-day period. Another huge point made in the rule was limiting the maximum time a pilot can be scheduled on duty which includes the time waiting for flights and other tasks (Houston 2016). The time varies from 9 to 14 based on time zones and the time at which the pilot started their first flight (“Press Release” 2011).

The new flight and duty requirements don’t impact cargo operators. This has sparked a lot of debate. The cargo carriers continue to operate under the old regulations (Carroll 2014). The current rules that cargo carriers use regarding flight and duty limitations are old and don’t fall in line with the current fatigue science. The current rules that cargo operators are operating under allow 16 hours of duty. Cargo pilots can begin their day late at night and still fly for the 16 hours (ALPA n.d.). The rules don’t take into account what time a pilot starts their day or time zones. The cargo operators do not follow any of this research as they are still following the old rules. In addition, the cargo operators have no rules regarding the quality of rest facilities on the aircraft. Therefore, there are cargo operators who have spent a ton of money on rest facilities and there are lots of places that haven’t done much (ALPA n.d.).  According to the Air Line Association International (n.d.), cargo airlines vary in scheduling, work hours and work rules. The FAA has said it “encourages cargo operators to opt in to the new rule voluntarily, which would require them to comply with all of its provisions (Werfelmen 2012).” Therefore, the only current way a cargo pilot will fall in line with the new part 117 requirements is if the carrier voluntarily opts into the rules.

I think that the cargo carriers have been excluded from the changes mostly due to financial reasons. According to Linda Werfelman, "The FAA, however, said that that the cost of including cargo operators under the new rule would have been too great, compared with the benefits they would have likely received (2012). The FAA analyzed the cost of including cargo carriers in the rules and they said it would cost cargo carriers $306 million (CAA 2012). According to the Cargo Airline Association, the FAA ranged the benefits at $20.35 million to $32.55 million (2012). The costs of implementing the rules would really hurt the cargo industry whose operations are done 24/7. In addition to these financial numbers, the average hours per month at a cargo operation is 45.5 hours and the passenger carrier operation has an average of over 50 hours per month (CAA 2012). That being said, the debate was that the cargo industry is much different from the passenger carrying industry and fatigue requirements shouldn’t be the same since there are material differences between the two (CAA 2012). Due to the fact that cargo operations are done around the clock, the crew rest requirements would really effect the transportation of products across the U.S. as crew scheduling could become an issue. On top of this, it seems this was a knee jerk reaction by the FAA to get something done after the Colgan crash where fatigue was a factor in the accident (Maxon 2011). I think public perception was definitely a factor because the general public only has concerns on whether the passenger carrying industry is safe. By applying the rules, it would satisfy the concerns from the public and still be able to satisfy the financial needs of the cargo operators.

I think that cargo carriers should definitely be included in the rules. Cargo pilots are definitely still faced with fatigue in their operations. The new fatigue science needs to be applied to the crew rest requirements of the cargo industry. The FAA has said that the traveling through time zones and the hours at which pilots begin are all factors in fatigue based on the new rules (“Press Release” 2011). By not applying the fatigue science to the cargo industry, the level of safety isn’t there because cargo carriers are still using regulations that aren’t based on the newer fatigue science. Not only that, but cargo carriers are still operating in the same airspace as passenger operations. I think that a consensus should be made to adopt better crew rest requirements even if it means coming up with different requirements than the requirements laid out in part 117 for passenger carrier operations.

As a pilot entering the industry I think that if cargo carriers were included in the new rules it could potentially impact me in a positive way. With better requirements it could create a better atmosphere for pilots because he or she will potentially be able to get more sleep and possibly result in a more positive work environment. At the same time however, I would be wary in the changes as a prospective pilot looking for future jobs. If the FAA’s estimated costs are correct, the cargo carriers could take a huge financial loss. Anytime a business takes a significant financial loss, there is a potential for employers to make cuts. That being said, I still believe that there should be some kind of improvement made in the flight and duty requirements even if an entirely new set of rules separate from the passenger operation rules is made. The rules could be more tailored to the operation of a cargo carrier.

ALPA. (n.d.). All airline pilots are human when it comes to fatigue. Retrieved October 7, 2016,    from http://www3.alpa.org/Portals/Alpa/deptpages/govtaffairs/issues/AllAirlinePilotsHumanF    tigue_Jan2013.pdf

CAA. (2012, January 17). Flightcrew member duty and rest requirements. Retrieved October 07,   2016, from http://www.cargoair.org/2012/01/flightcrew-member-duty-rest-requirements/

Carroll, J. R. (2014, March 13). UPS pilots urge more rest for cargo crews. Retrieved October       07, 2016, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/13/ups-pilots-urge      more-rest-for-cargo-crews/6402615

Houston, S. (2016, March 1). FAA final rule on pilot duty and rest requirements. Retrieved            October 07, 2016, from https://www.thebalance.com/faa-final-rule-pilot-duty-and-rest           requirements-282927

Maxon, T. (2011, December). FAA issues rules to ensure that pilots get enough rest. Retrieved       October 07, 2016, from http://www.dallasnews.com/business/airlines/2011/12/22/faa issues-rules-to-ensure-that-pilots-get-enough-rest

Press Release – FAA Issues final rule on pilot fatigue. (2011, December 21). Retrieved October     07, 2016, from https://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=13272

Werfelman, L. (2012, February). Regulating Rest. Retrieved October 7, 2016, from http://flightsafety.org/asw/feb12/asw_feb12_p16-19.pdf?dl=1