I concur on the directs and the WX. However I poked around on APA website and found this info on the radiation hazards:
"Ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which is the kind of radiation you wear sunscreen to protect your skin from, is non-ionizing radiation (it does not penetrate beyond the surface of the skin), nor is it an in-flight exposure issue since commercial jet aircraft windshields manufactured since the 1950’s screen out practically all UV rays. Although this was originally done to protect the aircraft instruments, it also means that you can skip the wearing of sunblock on the flight deck."
And this. Note how altitude effect exposure:
Understanding The Variables Affecting In-Flight Exposure
Cosmic radiation is scattered around to both the sunny and dark sides of the Earth, so day versus night flying does not appreciably change how much cosmic radiation you receive during flight. The amount of radiation that anyone—passenger or crew—traveling in an aircraft receives, is a factor of:
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Aircraft altitude: Radiation levels double with each approximate 6,500-foot climb.
So doing some math calculations, the atmospheric cosmic radiation at FL390 is about 64 times greater than at sea level. At FL 330, the radiation level is significantly lower at about 35 times more than sea level amounts. Therefore, if climbing to the next flight level doesn’t save you fuel, time, provide a much better ride, or some other important operational consideration, then think twice about it.
• Aircraft latitude: As an aircraft flies closer to the poles, occupants are exposed to greater amounts of radiation. At latitude 70º N, cosmic radiation levels can be as much as four times higher than at 25º N, at any given altitude. Aircrews who regularly fly from North America to Europe and Asia routinely receive the highest exposures to in-flight cosmic radiation, which can be as high as 6 mSv or more per year depending on the combinations of the other variables. (NOTE: 1 mSv or millisevert is recommended exposure for the general public -- Unit)
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Length of time at altitude: Long flights at cruise altitude expose crews to more inflight radiation versus short hops.
(Due to this my International days are over although Deep South is probably better -- Unit)
• Period during the 11-year solar cycle: The Sun follows a high to low then back to high level of flare activity which runs in an approximately 11-year pattern. When the Sun is in its’ more active phase, less galactic radiation conversely reaches our planet.
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Solar flares: These events are sporadic, and can vary greatly in strength and degree of biological concern, boosting in-flight exposure levels by 10 times or more. Elevations in radiation levels that are induced by solar flares can last for a few minutes or a few days.
This probably deseves its own thread. The whole article is 9 pages long.
Unit
