ALPA Readies for Pilot Fatigue Rule
New Regulation Expected in August

July 14, 2011 - The Federal Aviation Administration has pledged—and federal law mandates—that in August the regulator will issue a final rule on flight- and duty-time limits and minimum rest requirements for U.S. airline pilots. The new regulations will be the culmination of years of work by the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), to engage the airline industry in developing modern duty and rest rules for pilots.

For decades, ALPA has relentlessly advocated for regulations that are based on science; apply equally to all types of airline operations, including domestic, international, and supplemental; and enable air carriers to establish Fatigue Risk Management Systems. Over the past two years, the FAA, the airlines, and airline employees, including ALPA, have engaged in a tremendous joint effort to develop recommendations on the issue to submit to the FAA.

When the FAA issues its final rule, ALPA will analyze the language to determine how well it meets the union’s long-standing principles for addressing pilot fatigue and to ensure that ALPA members—and all airline pilots—will be well positioned to arrive at work rested and ready to perform their jobs.

Please take a moment to look over recent articles from Air Line Pilot magazine detailing ALPA’s long history of work to combat pilot fatigue and the union’s position on the FAA’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued in September 2010. Look for more to come in early August.