Safety and Health at Work

Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute, Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (산업안전보건연구원)
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Proposed Data-Driven Approach for Occupational Risk Management of Aircrew Fatigue

  • Seah, Benjamin Zhi Qiang (Republic of Singapore Air Force Medical Service) ;
  • Gan, Wee Hoe (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Singapore General Hospital) ;
  • Wong, Sheau Hwa (Republic of Singapore Air Force Medical Service) ;
  • Lim, Mei Ann (PAPRSB Institute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam) ;
  • Goh, Poh Hui (PAPRSB Institute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam) ;
  • Singh, Jarnail (Civil Aviation Medical Board, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore) ;
  • Koh, David Soo Quee (Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore)
  • Received : 2021.03.09
  • Accepted : 2021.06.09
  • Published : 2021.12.30
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Abstract

Background: Fatigue is pervasive, under-reported, and potentially deadly where flight operations are concerned. The aviation industry appears to lack a standardized, practical, and easily replicable protocol for fatigue risk assessment which can be consistently applied across operators. Aim: Our paper sought to present a framework, supported by real-world data with subjective and objective parameters, to monitor aircrew fatigue and performance, and to determine the safe crew configuration for commercial airline operations. Methods: Our protocol identified risk factors for fatigue-induced performance degradation as triggers for fatigue risk and performance assessment. Using both subjective and objective measurements of sleep, fatigue, and performance in the form of instruments such as the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale, Samn-Perelli Crew Status Check, Psychomotor Vigilance Task, sleep logs, and a wearable actigraph for sleep log correlation and sleep duration and quality charting, a workflow flagging fatigue-prone flight operations for risk mitigation was developed and trialed. Results: In an operational study aimed at occupational assessment of fatigue and performance in airline pilots on a three-men crew versus a four-men crew for a long-haul flight, we affirmed the technical feasibility of our proposed framework and approach, the validity of the battery of assessment instruments, and the meaningful interpretation of fatigue and work performance indicators to enable the formulation of safe work recommendations. Conclusion: A standardized occupational assessment protocol like ours is useful to achieve consistency and objectivity in the occupational assessment of fatigue and work performance.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

GWH, WSH, and DK conceptualized the paper. BS, GWH, and DK designed the protocol and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. GWH, WSH, MAL, GPH, and DK undertook fieldwork. GWH, WSH, JS, and DK provided expert opinions. MAL and GPH collected data and performed data analysis. All authors participated in the critical discussion of the manuscript and have agreed to the final version of the manuscript for publication.

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