I guess we all know it's not the healthiest job...

[Juud]

Miserable subject, good thread Dolley.

There is a good reason why an airline will minimise what they tell us about fatigue; here's the quite:

there are important legal and economic implications of recognising fatigue as a cause that mean that it is rarely addressed

If we know too much about it, we might force our unions to act on the information. Wouldn't do, would it?

In the mean time, there is a lot of info available on the web. Read it at your own risk; it's not happy reading. But it does explain a lot of the symptoms most of us have in varying degrees.

A short & simple page is here.
Something a tad longer but well worth the read you'll find here.
An easily readable article that highlights the stark reality of lay-over life is here.
A short explanation about the difference in fatigue as experienced by ourselves and by pilots is http://www.dlr.de/me/publikationen/a...002.samel.html

The Lancet doesn't just publish any rubbish, in fact they are very very strict about the research they publish. If this is what they write, I would certainly believe that these are the facts. Pretty bad, isn't it?

On a personal note, if you had trouble working night shifts (without time-difference!) then I think you are wise in not opting for LH.
It takes a heavy toll, and after a couple of near-misses in the past, I now try not to drive a car the day I arrive from a LH flight, and preferably not the day after that either.
But with leave getting shorter and shorter, this is of course not an option for most people.

Hearing getting worse is a no-brainier. Look at he noise levels we work in. It does affect our hearing, no doubt about it. The longer you FA for a living, the higher you will have to turn up your set to catch the nine o clock news.


Virginia, you keep telling us you'll quit flying as soon as you can get yourself a nice little office job, so I wouldn't worry about organs unfit for donation.
Unless you're considering donating your brain?