Update from US:
THE top US air safety regulator has said he hopes within a few months to have drafted tougher rules on fatigue among commuter airline pilots.
The new regime, and the speedy timetable for introducing it, is an indication that Randy Babbitt, the recently confirmed head of the Federal Aviation Administration, considers commuter pilot fatigue to be among the agency's top safety concerns.
Commuter airlines account for more than half of all commercial flights in the US.
They typically fly under contract from major carriers, ferrying passengers between smaller destinations and larger hubs.
Emerging from an industry-wide summit on commuter airline safety in Washington, Mr Babbitt also indicated his agency expected large carriers to provide more guidance and resources to improve the training and professionalism of pilots at their smaller commuter partners.
The closed-door session, convened by the FAA, was attended by airline executives, pilot union leaders and other industry groups.
Mr Babbitt's comments indicate the agency is moving more aggressively than many airline officials had expected.
The FAA appears poised to act on more than a decade's worth of sleep research by crafting standards for tighter limits on flight hours and workdays for commuter crews.
"The bottom line is, I'm going to want a new rule" aimed at combating commuter pilot fatigue, Mr Babbitt said. "I'd like to do it in the coming months." Congressional and public concerns over commuter airline safety have grown since the February 12 crash of a Colgan Air turboprop outside Buffalo.
Investigators discovered that the captain of the plane, flying under contract to Continental Airlines, had failed a number of flight proficiency tests in his career.
The crash also highlighted questions about adequate crew rest for commuter pilots.
During Monday's session, Mr Babbitt was blunt in calling for industry action. According to his prepared remarks for the meeting, the FAA chief said there was a public perception that pilots could repeatedly fail proficiency tests "and still keep their job".
Regardless of the size of the plane or the airline, Mr Babbitt said, "we want passengers to have no doubts about the qualifications of the person flying their plane".
Pilot union leaders have been prodding the FAA to beef up academic requirements for new commercial pilots, and emphasise additional mentoring of such pilots by veteran aviators.
After the meeting, Mr Babbitt said some mainline carriers had tentatively agreed to share facilities and other training resources with commuter airlines, with the goal of ensuring that pilots across the industry met the same standards.
The FAA has stopped short of agreeing to raise minimum requirements for issuing various licences to pilots, such as total number of flight hours or time spent behind the controls of multi-engined aircraft.
In many ways, however, proposed fatigue rules are bound to be more controversial with airlines.