Irish pilots say that fatigue is badly managed by the air travel industry here while some fear reporting the problem to their employer, according to an international survey.
The news prompted trade unionists to demand greater Government and regulatory oversight of the risk after the survey showed the Republic lags much of Europe in managing the problem.
European rules limit the hours that pilots can fly to 13 a-day and 60 in one week, and allow them to report unfit for flying if they feel fatigued.
But most Irish pilots say the issue is poorly managed here while some say they do not report as unfit due to fatigue as they fear “punishment”, according to a survey by trade union group, the European Cockpit Association.
Around half of European pilots say they flew fatigued recently while three out of four have experienced “micro sleeps” while on duty, states the survey of 7,200 pilots from 32 countries.
The Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) called for greater oversight of the issue in the Republic.
Capt Nicola Hughes, the trade union’s international director, said Minister for Transport, Darragh O’Brien, should appoint inspectors to ensure that airlines comply with employment law and allow pilots to exercise their safety responsibilities without fear of consequences.
The report, which does not name any Irish airline, shows that 71.5 per cent of pilots in the Republic say fatigue risk is “not well managed” or “mostly not well managed”, against slightly more than half for Europe as a whole.
In the last such survey in 2023, 61.7 per cent of Irish pilots criticised their employers’ fatigue management.
The ECA report notes that the Republic and Malta performed poorly relative to the rest of Europe this year and in 2023.
“Ireland is at or near the bottom across a range of critical fatigue-management and reporting measures, and in several areas the position has deteriorated rather than improved,” said Hughes.
Almost four in 10 pilots in Europe say that fear of punishment deters them from reporting that they are unfit to fly due to fatigue.
Of Irish pilots, only 3.6 per cent say they trust the reporting system, the lowest in Europe. The average is 12 per cent.
Hughes said that the responses required clear responses from the air travel safety regulator, Irish Aviation Authority and Government.
She called for strengthened independent oversight of fatigue management and employment practices.
Welcoming the survey the authority said it reinforced the importance of “effective, proactive management of fatigue risks” by airlines.
“European flight time limitation rules establish a common safety baseline, and operators are responsible for identifying and managing fatigue risks through their management systems, taking account of their specific operations,” the regulator pointed out.
The IAA added that its oversight of Irish airlines included consistently assessing and evaluating their application of flight-time rules.
Aer Lingus, one of the country’s two biggest airlines did not comment.
The airline has established protocols for reporting fatigue, according to a source familiar with the industry.
Ryanair had not responded to a request for comment by the time of going to press.