The research is focused on companies that fly missions beyond three time zones, either in an eastward or westward direction.

Fatigue Risk Management Science Ltd (FRMSc) has been commissioned to collect and analyse aircrew fatigue experienced during operations. The purpose of this research is to assist in the evolution of Flight Time Duty Limitation (FTL) rules for long haul flights that EASA is currently considering. The output of the study will be a crucial argument for the new EASA FTL legislation that should allow for better and more appropriate scheduling rules for crews and operators alike. To get the requested representative data, the EBAA calls upon operators and their flight crew to support the research by FRMSc through the participation of your long-haul pilots.

The aim is to collect data from 200 missions, composed of at least one sector that is flown beyond three time zones, to properly understand the changes in the human body clock and alertness. This information can be used to adjust the regulation closer to the actual human needs. The pilots who volunteer will be asked to wear a special iOS or Android app to easily collect/confirm duty data and sleep times, perceived workload, and fatigue. In addition, some volunteers will be asked to wear an Actiwatch that FRMc will make available for use during operations to complement the data from the app with objective data on their alertness status.

The collected data will be collected, anonymised, and processed by FRMSc and treated as confidential. Once the study is completed, the entire data set will be erased from the FRMSc database.

If necessary, the secretariat will extend the participation to other operators.