Ouch! If this is correct - and there is no reason to doubt it - then stepping onto a plane ought be a matter for grave concern. TravelMole reports in "Four in 10 pilots 'fall asleep at controls'" on what one would hope (and pray?) isn't widespread amongst airlines around the world.
"Four out of 10 UK pilots have fallen asleep while flying an aircraft, a new survey has revealed.
The report, carried out on behalf of the European Cockpit Association (ECA) which represents pilots across the EU, also revealed that a third had woken up to find their co-pilot asleep as well.
Now the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) is warning that current proposals by the European Aviation Safety Agency to introduce the same working hours for pilots across the EU will make the situation even worse as they are more permissive than those already in place in the UK.
More than half of the 6,000-plus pilots who were questioned for the ECA survey said their performance had been hampered by fatigue, but 70% to 80% would not file a fatigue report or declare they were unfit to fly for fear of the reaction of their employers.
Seventy-nine percent of those who felt unfit said this was "sometimes" or "often" the case.
The ECA claimed that long working and standby hours, night flights and disruptive schedules contributed to pilots spending long periods awake. It is using the results of its survey to back up its campaign for safer flying time regulations."
"Four out of 10 UK pilots have fallen asleep while flying an aircraft, a new survey has revealed.
The report, carried out on behalf of the European Cockpit Association (ECA) which represents pilots across the EU, also revealed that a third had woken up to find their co-pilot asleep as well.
Now the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) is warning that current proposals by the European Aviation Safety Agency to introduce the same working hours for pilots across the EU will make the situation even worse as they are more permissive than those already in place in the UK.
More than half of the 6,000-plus pilots who were questioned for the ECA survey said their performance had been hampered by fatigue, but 70% to 80% would not file a fatigue report or declare they were unfit to fly for fear of the reaction of their employers.
Seventy-nine percent of those who felt unfit said this was "sometimes" or "often" the case.
The ECA claimed that long working and standby hours, night flights and disruptive schedules contributed to pilots spending long periods awake. It is using the results of its survey to back up its campaign for safer flying time regulations."
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