Fatigue and Ability to Concentrate in Flight Attendants During Ultra-Long-Range Flights

Sammito, Stefan, David Cyrol, and Janina Post. Fatigue and ability to concentrate in flight attendants during ultra-long-range flights. High Alt Med Biol. 23:159-164, 2022. Scientific studies on stresses and strains experienced by flight crews in the ultra-long-range (ULR) sector have focused on the group of pilots. Studies on cabin crews are rare. The subjective fatigue, concentration, and responsiveness of 16 flight attendants were examined during 3 flights (first and third flights were ULR flights) and related to the local time at the home airport. The flight route was Cologne/Bonn (Germany) to Canberra (Australia) (first flight), Tahiti (French Polynesia) (second flight), and back to Cologne/Bonn (third flight). Overall, there was an increase in fatigue (first flight: +36.0% and third flight: +38.5%) as well as reduced responsiveness (-32.5% and -35.5%) and concentration (-30.0% and -33.5%) in the course of the ULR flights. A marked increase in fatigue occurred in particular during night hours measured against the local time at the home airport, especially at the beginning of the third flight. For all parameters, there was consistently no difference between the individual shift groups of flight attendants (p > 0.05). ULR flights cause cabin crew members to become increasingly fatigued due to the length of the flights despite appropriate rest opportunities. The available findings can help to prepare in the best possible way for necessary flight safety through appropriate planning of shift models, especially with regard to the potentially critical takeoff and landing stages. To this end, local times at the home airport must also be taken into account.