Nil further yes I'm aware of what's going on at easyJet and fully support the pilots in their fight against the implementation of EASA regs. In fact it would have a positive impact to the rest of the industry if the union is successful. I'm sceptical however as to the odds of long term success.
I've worked EASA regs at another low cost operator and can certainly vouch for how utterly senseless and dangerous they are. At said operator (I'm not afraid to say Wizz Air) we could check in at 05:30 local for a 4 sector day with a total duty time of 12:15h. Not only that but you could be doing this after another four sector early (11hr+) the day before! Needless to say, the flights being carried out WITHOUT controlled rest were the exception rather than the rule.
One particular week of five earlies on the spin (including at least one of such duties) I remember as PM feeling my head nodding in the cruise then managing to rouse myself sufficiently to look across at the PF whose head was doing exactly the same thing! How we haven't been able as a pilot community to collectively fight this in an effective way is an utter disgrace.
My point is though that the genie has been let out of the bottle now and there is enormous commercial pressure for easyJet to follow suit. If such previously fatiguing duties are now defined as legal then easyJet will try to roster them, make no mistake.
It's going to take a smoking hole in the ground to sort this out ultimately (and unfortunately) but even then managing to pin the blame squarely on the role of fatigue in any accident is going to prove very problematic and difficult. Look at the Colgan Air Q400 crash in Buffalo, screamed fatigue all day long. What do the FAA do? Implement a 1500hr experience rule for FO's! Irrelevant but it provided the window dressing that something had been changed.
Sorry again for the thread drift guys.
Last edited by RexBanner; 9th Jan 2016 at 10:34.
Reason: Grammar!