Pilot's long commutes criticised
Senators in the USA have strongly urged the FAA to do something about pilots who regularly commute long distances to get to work. This concern is largely down to the Colgan air crash of February 12 2009. The first officer on board the Dash 8 Q400 had the night before slept in the crew lounge at Newark airport following a commute from the Pacific Southwest where she lived. The Captain on board had also spent the previous night in the crew lounge, which was against the airlines policy, as he lived in Florida and had been on a two day tour.
In the year following this incedent little has been done to address the issue of pilots commuting hundereds and, sometimes, thousands of miles. The FAA however, has reinforced the point that it is down to the pilots to ensure they arrive at their job 'well rested and ready to fly'.
It has been reported that 70% of the Colgan Air pilots based at Newark airport commuted to work from other cities and that 20% of the total workforce regularly commuted over 1000 miles. Colgan Air is a regional carrier that operates codeshare flights for Continental Airlines.
Source: The LA Times
