Hair-on-Fire
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Nice work Delta.
In Boon to Airlines, FAA Allows
Longer Pilot Shifts on Some Flights
[FONT=times new roman,times,serif][FONT=times new roman,times,serif]By ANDY PASZTOR
December 6, 2006; Page A5[/FONT]
[/FONT]
With airlines relying increasingly on extended global routes, U.S. air-safety regulators have set an important precedent by allowing pilots to fly longer than normal shifts on certain nonstop trips.
The Federal Aviation Administration took the first step late last month by permitting some Delta Air Lines Inc. pilots to be scheduled behind the controls for a total of more than the current eight-hour limit during a single workday.
It issued special operational rules covering Delta's daily flights between Mumbai, India, and New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport that will allow the carrier to complete the trips without having to add an additional flight crew beyond the four pilots normally required on shorter international routes. It is the longest nonstop flight for any U.S carrier, scheduled for a maximum of about 16.5 hours. With weather and other complications, the flight could last 17 hours or more, and officials estimate that some pilots could end up flying about 40 minutes longer than the usual cutoff.
Industry and government officials anticipate a spate of similar requests from other carriers to ease flight-time limits on so-called ultralong-range runs. The changes could lay the foundation for potentially significant labor-cost savings as more U.S. airlines scramble to open up longer, more profitable routes.
Peggy Gilligan, a senior FAA safety official, said the Delta flight "is a very good example of what we are going to do" with subsequent requests and is "an indication of how we are going to stay ahead of what technology will allow these planes to do."
The latest rules have sparked skepticism from some pilot groups partly because the outside fatigue-prevention expert Delta used, consultant Mark Rosekind, championed efforts last year that allegedly skirted flight-time restrictions for JetBlue Airways Corp. pilots on domestic flights. JetBlue has said safety wasn't compromised. Mr. Rosekind's office said he was unavailable. The JetBlue flights were the subject of an Oct. 21 page-one article in The Wall Street Journal.
Pilot unions "are very upset with the FAA" because there was no opportunity to formally comment on the decision, said Don Wykoff, a Delta captain and spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association. The union "would have liked to have a second opinion" from another expert, he said. Delta worked closely with the FAA and others "to be able to offer customers the convenience of this direct flight under the same top-tier safety standards" used on every flight, said Steve Dickson, vice president of flight operations.
Captain Wykoff, who heads the union's group analyzing flight time issues, said that while the FAA informed pilots about the change it didn't do enough to seek meaningful input from them. As carriers enter new territory with flights longer than 16 hours, he said, pilots should be given "more of an opportunity for dialogue."
FAA officials said approvals initially will be made on a case by case basis but broad industry-wide rules are expected to be established later.
For the Mumbai-New York run, extra precautions required by the FAA include longer-than-usual mandatory rest periods prior to takeoff, use of other fatigue-prevention techniques and two specified sleep breaks totaling eight hours for each pilot during cruise. There are other unique rules specifying extensive rest periods after the flight, as well as in the event it is canceled. Flight attendants also are mandated to get extra-long rest periods before and during the flight. Delta has pledged to collect data and file regular reports with the agency.
The FAA's Ms. Gilligan said the decision tracks similar moves by foreign carriers, some of which allow flights longer than 16 hours with four-person crews. It reflects the latest scientific data about managing fatigue and improved cockpit technology and "sets out very detailed requirements" to ensure Delta pilots get adequate rest before and during the flight, she said in an interview earlier this week.
Existing flight-time limits for cockpit crews were "adopted decades ago, when airplanes were not capable of flying anywhere near 16 hours," the agency told Delta in a November 21 letter. FAA documents show that under some circumstances, the total duty time for pilots on the twin-engine, extended-range Boeing 777 flying from Mumbai to JFK could stretch beyond 20 hours, which includes both flight time and nonflight duties. Special overhead sleeping berths are available to provide rest for pilots and flight attendants.
Under the latest rules, Delta isn't required to carry more than the standard two pilots and two reserve pilots used on many international routes. In the past, the agency has given narrow waivers for pilots to be scheduled for slightly more than eight hours flying time at a stretch. But those were for shorter routes, generally across the Atlantic Ocean. In Delta's case, the agency says some India-U.S. flights will be allowed to take off even if the projected time from gate to gate is close to 18 hours.
The moves comes after years of work by the FAA and pilot groups to create a uniform set of enhanced maintenance, operational and equipment requirements for all jetliners flying long-distance routes. Those rules are expected to become final around the end of the year.
In Boon to Airlines, FAA Allows
Longer Pilot Shifts on Some Flights
[FONT=times new roman,times,serif][FONT=times new roman,times,serif]By ANDY PASZTOR
December 6, 2006; Page A5[/FONT]
[/FONT]
With airlines relying increasingly on extended global routes, U.S. air-safety regulators have set an important precedent by allowing pilots to fly longer than normal shifts on certain nonstop trips.
The Federal Aviation Administration took the first step late last month by permitting some Delta Air Lines Inc. pilots to be scheduled behind the controls for a total of more than the current eight-hour limit during a single workday.
It issued special operational rules covering Delta's daily flights between Mumbai, India, and New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport that will allow the carrier to complete the trips without having to add an additional flight crew beyond the four pilots normally required on shorter international routes. It is the longest nonstop flight for any U.S carrier, scheduled for a maximum of about 16.5 hours. With weather and other complications, the flight could last 17 hours or more, and officials estimate that some pilots could end up flying about 40 minutes longer than the usual cutoff.
Industry and government officials anticipate a spate of similar requests from other carriers to ease flight-time limits on so-called ultralong-range runs. The changes could lay the foundation for potentially significant labor-cost savings as more U.S. airlines scramble to open up longer, more profitable routes.
Peggy Gilligan, a senior FAA safety official, said the Delta flight "is a very good example of what we are going to do" with subsequent requests and is "an indication of how we are going to stay ahead of what technology will allow these planes to do."
The latest rules have sparked skepticism from some pilot groups partly because the outside fatigue-prevention expert Delta used, consultant Mark Rosekind, championed efforts last year that allegedly skirted flight-time restrictions for JetBlue Airways Corp. pilots on domestic flights. JetBlue has said safety wasn't compromised. Mr. Rosekind's office said he was unavailable. The JetBlue flights were the subject of an Oct. 21 page-one article in The Wall Street Journal.
Pilot unions "are very upset with the FAA" because there was no opportunity to formally comment on the decision, said Don Wykoff, a Delta captain and spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association. The union "would have liked to have a second opinion" from another expert, he said. Delta worked closely with the FAA and others "to be able to offer customers the convenience of this direct flight under the same top-tier safety standards" used on every flight, said Steve Dickson, vice president of flight operations.
Captain Wykoff, who heads the union's group analyzing flight time issues, said that while the FAA informed pilots about the change it didn't do enough to seek meaningful input from them. As carriers enter new territory with flights longer than 16 hours, he said, pilots should be given "more of an opportunity for dialogue."
FAA officials said approvals initially will be made on a case by case basis but broad industry-wide rules are expected to be established later.
For the Mumbai-New York run, extra precautions required by the FAA include longer-than-usual mandatory rest periods prior to takeoff, use of other fatigue-prevention techniques and two specified sleep breaks totaling eight hours for each pilot during cruise. There are other unique rules specifying extensive rest periods after the flight, as well as in the event it is canceled. Flight attendants also are mandated to get extra-long rest periods before and during the flight. Delta has pledged to collect data and file regular reports with the agency.
The FAA's Ms. Gilligan said the decision tracks similar moves by foreign carriers, some of which allow flights longer than 16 hours with four-person crews. It reflects the latest scientific data about managing fatigue and improved cockpit technology and "sets out very detailed requirements" to ensure Delta pilots get adequate rest before and during the flight, she said in an interview earlier this week.
Existing flight-time limits for cockpit crews were "adopted decades ago, when airplanes were not capable of flying anywhere near 16 hours," the agency told Delta in a November 21 letter. FAA documents show that under some circumstances, the total duty time for pilots on the twin-engine, extended-range Boeing 777 flying from Mumbai to JFK could stretch beyond 20 hours, which includes both flight time and nonflight duties. Special overhead sleeping berths are available to provide rest for pilots and flight attendants.
Under the latest rules, Delta isn't required to carry more than the standard two pilots and two reserve pilots used on many international routes. In the past, the agency has given narrow waivers for pilots to be scheduled for slightly more than eight hours flying time at a stretch. But those were for shorter routes, generally across the Atlantic Ocean. In Delta's case, the agency says some India-U.S. flights will be allowed to take off even if the projected time from gate to gate is close to 18 hours.
The moves comes after years of work by the FAA and pilot groups to create a uniform set of enhanced maintenance, operational and equipment requirements for all jetliners flying long-distance routes. Those rules are expected to become final around the end of the year.
