Noisey 737 cockpit
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Noisey 737 cockpit
Hi All,
I'm new on the 737-800. It's a great airplane, with only one major discomfort to me. NOISE! For such a new airplane, I was expecting it to be a lot quiter.
With 20 years left until retirement, I was wondering if anybody had any tips for dealing with the noise.....aside from the obvious, ie airplugs and flying below 300 kts. On previous airplanes we'd cycle the recirculation fans on and off to give ourselves a break from noisey cockpits with no ill effects. I haven't tried it on the 737 yet. Anybody know if this helps?
I'm new on the 737-800. It's a great airplane, with only one major discomfort to me. NOISE! For such a new airplane, I was expecting it to be a lot quiter.
With 20 years left until retirement, I was wondering if anybody had any tips for dealing with the noise.....aside from the obvious, ie airplugs and flying below 300 kts. On previous airplanes we'd cycle the recirculation fans on and off to give ourselves a break from noisey cockpits with no ill effects. I haven't tried it on the 737 yet. Anybody know if this helps?
Having flown the B737-200/300 for 4,500 hours I found the A320 flight deck the noisiest I had ever operated in - what standards do the Health & Safety Act lay down with respect to ambient noise in the workplace?
As has been said above get some good noise cancelling headsets but the trouble is they can get rather heavy on the longer sectors.
Have any of the BALPA technical committees done any research about noise environment on the flight deck?
As has been said above get some good noise cancelling headsets but the trouble is they can get rather heavy on the longer sectors.
Have any of the BALPA technical committees done any research about noise environment on the flight deck?
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I have 2000 hrs on the 733/4 and I still post the same question, and usually we climb and descend at 320 Kts. I believ there is nothing you can do since it is an aerodynamic noise... Noise canceling headsets? Might be good idea...
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Fireflybob et al. .Cockpit noise has been a significant health hazard for pilots since the days of the Wright Brothers and still causes many pilots -particularly commercial pilots - to suffer accelerated presbycusis (the natural deterioration in hearing acuity that we all suffer with age.) As well as being unpleasant and causing long term hearing loss, it is well known that excessive noise causes a stress reaction in most people with heightened levels of adrenaline and catecholamines, as well as lowering one's ability to concentrate for long periods. None of these effects are good for personal safety or flight safety. You and your employer should be doing your utmost to combat this problem and reduce your exposure to high noise levels.
Whether or not the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Noise at Work Regulations 1989 apply to the cockpit of an aircraft in flight is open to debate and I do not think this has ever been tested in a court of law. They should apply, but I believe the CAA and aircraft manufacturers would rather they did not, whilst the Health & Safety Executive tend to give aviation a wide berth anyway and are not inclined to enforce the relevant legislation. Regardless of whether the HSW Act applies the fact remains that your employer has a common law duty of care to look after your health, safety and welfare while you are at work - even if they do not always choose to exercise this duty of care! This includes looking after your hearing and other aspects of health.
In the absence of further noise reduction through good aircraft design and noise insulation of the cockpit, the only option is to protect your hearing from the source of the noise. As well as noise cancelling headsets, you could also try bespoke ear plugs which are worn by many pilots in their ear canal beneath a normal headset. These tailor-made, moulded plugs incorporate noise damping materials which remove harmful frequencies but still allow normal RT and voice frequencies to reach the ear drum. They are not cheap - about £120 last time I looked - but they do work and are a snip compared to the value of your hearing. The employer should pay for these, as they should for all protective equipment provided in the interests of health & safety - but I suspect they may not want to! Try the following website for details of a well-known supplier of quality hearing protection:- <a href="http://www.braemaraudiology.co.uk/earprotection.htm" target="_blank">www.braemaraudiology.co.uk/earprotection.htm</a>. .There are several other suppliers you can find on the web.. .For information 85db is usually considered the upper limit of 'safe' noise exposure with 90dB the limit for exposure over an 8 hour shift. The theory is that if you keep your exposure below 85dB it should not cause any long term hearing impairment over an average life span. However - like radiation - noise exposure has a cumulative effect and there is no definitive 'safe' limit. You are well advised to keep the noise level as far as practicable below 85dB nad good quality hearing protection can help you achieve this. I hope some of this is useful to you.
Whether or not the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Noise at Work Regulations 1989 apply to the cockpit of an aircraft in flight is open to debate and I do not think this has ever been tested in a court of law. They should apply, but I believe the CAA and aircraft manufacturers would rather they did not, whilst the Health & Safety Executive tend to give aviation a wide berth anyway and are not inclined to enforce the relevant legislation. Regardless of whether the HSW Act applies the fact remains that your employer has a common law duty of care to look after your health, safety and welfare while you are at work - even if they do not always choose to exercise this duty of care! This includes looking after your hearing and other aspects of health.
In the absence of further noise reduction through good aircraft design and noise insulation of the cockpit, the only option is to protect your hearing from the source of the noise. As well as noise cancelling headsets, you could also try bespoke ear plugs which are worn by many pilots in their ear canal beneath a normal headset. These tailor-made, moulded plugs incorporate noise damping materials which remove harmful frequencies but still allow normal RT and voice frequencies to reach the ear drum. They are not cheap - about £120 last time I looked - but they do work and are a snip compared to the value of your hearing. The employer should pay for these, as they should for all protective equipment provided in the interests of health & safety - but I suspect they may not want to! Try the following website for details of a well-known supplier of quality hearing protection:- <a href="http://www.braemaraudiology.co.uk/earprotection.htm" target="_blank">www.braemaraudiology.co.uk/earprotection.htm</a>. .There are several other suppliers you can find on the web.. .For information 85db is usually considered the upper limit of 'safe' noise exposure with 90dB the limit for exposure over an 8 hour shift. The theory is that if you keep your exposure below 85dB it should not cause any long term hearing impairment over an average life span. However - like radiation - noise exposure has a cumulative effect and there is no definitive 'safe' limit. You are well advised to keep the noise level as far as practicable below 85dB nad good quality hearing protection can help you achieve this. I hope some of this is useful to you.
