TY - JOUR
T1 - Effects of work shifts on fatigue levels of air traffic controllers
AU - Chang, Yu Hern
AU - Yang, Hui Hua
AU - Hsu, Wan Jou
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) of Taiwan under grants MOST 106-2410-H-006-013-MY2 and MOST 106-2410-H-309-007 -. We greatly appreciate the participation of Taiwanese ATCs in answering the survey. We are also grateful to the Editor-in-Chief and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions which have improved the paper substantially.
Funding Information:
This paper was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) of Taiwan under grants MOST 106-2410-H-006-013-MY2 and MOST 106-2410-H-309-007-. We greatly appreciate the participation of Taiwanese ATCs in answering the survey. We are also grateful to the Editor-in-Chief and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions which have improved the paper substantially.
PY - 2019/5
Y1 - 2019/5
N2 - Fatigue is one of the most important issues since it is considered to be a potential risk factor for human error. Most research related to human fatigue in the aviation industry targets pilots, yet air traffic controllers also experience elevated levels of fatigue that affects aviation safety. Despite this, fatigue is often ignored in literature, as it is a mental and physical status that is difficult to measure. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) announced the concept of the Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS) in Annex 6 in 2011, which provides suggestions to reduce aircrew fatigue. In 2016, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (CANSO), ICAO, and the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Associations (IFATCA) published the Fatigue Management Guide for Air Traffic Service Providers and for the first time proposed recommendations for air traffic controllers (ATCs) to address this issue. Based on the management guide, this research used the Samn-Perelli fatigue scale to measure air traffic controllers’ fatigue levels in an international aerodrome control tower in Taiwan. The results indicated that there were significant differences between day/night shifts, time periods (shift start time, before break time, after break time, and shift end time), and various work schedules. The results also revealed the importance of the timing of the breaks and time on task when arranging work schedules. This research contributes to aviation safety by investigating ATCs’ fatigue levels in current work shifts, thereby helping related units to improve and adjust shift schedules in order to reduce the risks related to fatigue.
AB - Fatigue is one of the most important issues since it is considered to be a potential risk factor for human error. Most research related to human fatigue in the aviation industry targets pilots, yet air traffic controllers also experience elevated levels of fatigue that affects aviation safety. Despite this, fatigue is often ignored in literature, as it is a mental and physical status that is difficult to measure. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) announced the concept of the Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS) in Annex 6 in 2011, which provides suggestions to reduce aircrew fatigue. In 2016, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (CANSO), ICAO, and the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Associations (IFATCA) published the Fatigue Management Guide for Air Traffic Service Providers and for the first time proposed recommendations for air traffic controllers (ATCs) to address this issue. Based on the management guide, this research used the Samn-Perelli fatigue scale to measure air traffic controllers’ fatigue levels in an international aerodrome control tower in Taiwan. The results indicated that there were significant differences between day/night shifts, time periods (shift start time, before break time, after break time, and shift end time), and various work schedules. The results also revealed the importance of the timing of the breaks and time on task when arranging work schedules. This research contributes to aviation safety by investigating ATCs’ fatigue levels in current work shifts, thereby helping related units to improve and adjust shift schedules in order to reduce the risks related to fatigue.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jairtraman.2019.01.013
DO - 10.1016/j.jairtraman.2019.01.013
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85060589474
SN - 0969-6997
VL - 76
SP - 1
EP - 9
JO - Journal of Air Transport Management
JF - Journal of Air Transport Management
ER -