More than half of Icelandair pilots report falling asleep on duty

More than half of Icelandair pilots, or 56%, say they unintentionally fell asleep while working on board during the past three months, mbl.is reports. One third of respondents to a fatigue survey by the Icelandic Association of Commercial Pilots said it had happened more than once.

The survey was sent to all Icelandair pilots in the first half of August. A total of 508 pilots responded, representing nearly 80% of the association’s members.

Nine out of 10 respondents said their workload and shift arrangements were unsustainable in terms of fatigue and had a negative impact on flight safety. Fatigue affecting alertness was most common among pilots in the Boeing 737 fleet.

The survey also found that pilots are expected to remove themselves from flight duty when they believe fatigue could endanger flight safety. However, about one third of respondents said they did not feel sufficiently able to do so, either at their home base or at an outstation. The association described this as one of the most serious safety failures revealed by the findings.

The association said the results indicated that unacceptable safety risks linked to fatigue had become an established part of Icelandair’s daily operations. The findings have been presented to the airline and will also be sent to the Icelandic Transport Authority.

Icelandair said the safety of passengers and employees was always its top priority. The airline also said its collective agreement with the association went beyond regulations on crew rest and working hours in many cases.

The association and Icelandair are now working on proposals for improvements. Icelandair said it was not yet appropriate to discuss the findings publicly in detail.