Fatigue Explained

What is Fatigue?

Fatigue is:

• a lack of energy affecting mental and physical performance.

• Caused by lack of sleep or physical exertion and is relieved by sleep.

• Different from feeling drowsy or sleepy.

• Adversely affects reaction time, situational awareness, and attention.

• Individual reactions may vary.

How Do I Claim Fatigue?

• After utilizing all available rest, if you are fatigued and unable to safely operate, contact Crew Scheduling (or, if unable to get through to Crew Scheduling try contacting the IFDM or post in EZ Chat) and let them know you are "unable to operate due to fatigue".

• At the time of the call, Scheduling and/or the IFDM may ask you a few questions regarding your fatigue claim; this is normal and expected. 

• You will immediately be released to fatigue rest at that time (10 hours for Lineholders and 12 hours for Reserves). You may then be transferred to the IFDM (Inflight Duty Manager) who will coordinate your hotel accommodations.

• Once removed from your assignment, you must complete your fatigue rest before you can perform any other work actions. This includes deadheading and "fake" deadheads. 

NOTE: You will not be directed to go to a hospital or doctor; you will be released to your fatigue rest immediately. After your fatigue rest is complete, you then have 48 hours to file the required Fatigue Report (FAFR) and it is critical that you do that.

Filing Your Fatigue Report

• You have 48 hours to file your Fatigue Report after completing your rest.

• Please wait until after your rest is complete before starting this report. This is a detailed and comprehensive report form and you want to be well rested before you attempt to complete it.

• Be as detailed as possible when filling out the report, including any facts and attached documents that support your fatigue claim. These may include:

  • Screenshots of your pairing

  • Videos/audio of hotel disruptions

  • Names of hotel staff or copies of communications surrounding the rest disruption

• Include the 5 W's:

  • Who?

  • What?

  • When?

  • Where?

  • Why?

• Once you have completed your Fatigue Report, make sure to check your company mail daily for any queries from the FRC (Fatigue Review Committee) who may be asking you for more information.

• Failure to respond to a follow-up request for more information could result in your Fatigue claim not being accepted by the FRC.

• Failure to file a report will result in your Fatigue claim being rejected.

➡️ File Your Fatigue Report Here

(or use the Safety App on your Link Device)

Varying types of fatigue and how to report

Operational Fatigue – Related to fatigue which occurred during the course of company flight time, duty time or rest assignments.

• May be a result of an unfavorable trip construction, an unfavorable back-to-back combination of trips, layover hotel problems or irregular operations within the Company’s control.

• Will not be considered an attendance and reliability event.

Non-Operational Fatigue – Related to fatigue not necessarily directly associated with company flight time, duty time or rest assignments or the flight attendant's actions or inactions.

• Typically a result of a situation not intentionally created by either the flight attendant or the Company, such as irregular operations or the inability to sleep due to interferences that could not have reasonably been foreseen or prevented either at home or during a rest assignment.

• Will not be considered an attendance and reliability event.

Self-Induced Fatigue – Related to fatigue generated as a direct or indirect result of the flight attendant’s actions or inactions.

• For example, the failure to reasonably plan a rest period by staying up late to watch a sporting event the night before an early morning flight, or not allowing for adequate rest prior to reporting for duty.

• May be subject to the Attendance and Reliability policy. The FRC will inform the flight attendant that the fatigue event may be subject to further review by their supervisor; however, the content of the report will remain within the FRC and may not be used in subsequent reviews.

Informational Fatigue – Designed to bring awareness to such a situation that, in the opinion of the flight attendant, has potential for creating a fatigue event.

• For example, in-flight sleep interruption due to external noise surrounding the flight crew rest facility.

Contributory Fatigue – A special type of Informational Fatigue Report where the segment was operated with a resulting crew error reported, e.g. the fatigue state contributed to the error.

• For example, a lapse in safety checks where fatigue was cited by a submitter as a contributing factor.

Miscategorized Event – When a report does not meet the criteria for any of the above categories, the FRC may classify it as a miscategorized event. This category includes reports that describe events that are more appropriately handled by other programs

• For example, fatigue due to illness or injury, Commuter Policy, Emergency Time Off, etc.

Flight Attendant Fatigue Report 

Flight Attendant Fatigue Report (FAFR) is a reporting tool for flight attendants to report fatigue, ask questions and raise concerns regarding situations believed to cause fatigue – all while remaining confidential. Each report is submitted, reviewed and managed through the EtQ reporting system with all personal identification information removed. Once a report is submitted, the flight attendant will be notified via email once an outcome has been determined by the FRC and if any additional steps are required. 

Link to Frequently Asked Questions

https://ft.ual.com/inflight/flight-attendant-fatigue-risk-management-program

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