The Real Numbers
The National article is misleading. The UAE GCAA regulations allow a pilot to work up to 60 hours duty in 7 days. It's there in black and white. That's almost 9 hrs a day every day for 7 days at any time of day or night.
The media (with help from the airlines) confuse flying hours with working hours. There is much work to be done before, after and in between flights. Few other industries demand this and certainly airline office staff only work 40 hours in 7 days. Of course a pilot will be fatigued if pushed toward the 60 hour limit in a noisy, vibrating, excessively dry, oxygen reduced and often stressful environment. Airlines in the UAE push these limits. The public must be made aware that their family may be flying with the pilots near the end of a 60 hour week.
It's appropriate to correct the media and the public with the true numbers of how much work a pilot can be pushed to do .
60 a week or 190 in 28 days. That's up to 2470 hours a year.
Those are the facts.
Even the public can see these limits are excessive, dangerous and plainly wrong.
Last edited by disconnected; 24th Mar 2016 at 16:27.