Huey O'NeilMrs. Z8 April 2014English I Honor Pilot Fatigue: Fatigue Problems in FlightOn February 12, 2009, Colgan Airlines Flight 3407 operated for Continental Airlines crashed in Buffalo, New York, in a rural neighborhood. This accident caused the loss of forty-five lives on the plane and one life on the ground due to pilot fatigue. The aircraft stopped on approach due to icing. Captain Marvin Renslow and FO Rebecca Shaw, the pilots operating the flight, had slept in the crew room at the airport, affecting the quality and duration of their sleep the previous night. This meant that the pilots' reaction to ice, a substance routinely encountered during flight, was substandard and inappropriate. According to the NTSB report, the probable cause of the crash was determined to be pilot error. In the report, fatigue was noted as a significant contributing factor to the erroneous stall response. This accident has sparked debate in the airline industry about how much sleep pilots need. Airline pilots' unions and pilots are pushing for fewer flights and more rest. However, both unions and pilots have been expressing their opinions on pilot fatigue for decades, without any adequate response from Congress or the Federal Aviation Administration. With over twenty-eight thousand commercial flights per day in the United States carrying over one and a half million people, serious changes need to be enforced. Some of these changes have already happened, but is it enough? While reducing the maximum number of on-duty hours pilots are allowed would require more pilots and cost more, pilots have less situational awareness when they are tired, endangering lives aboard their planes, there is still no reliable method to test fatigue, and .Aft… middle of paper… training for a qualified airline pilot costs $70,000. This would take a colossal sum of money directly out of the airline's bottom line. However, safety outweighs economic costs. Travelers should not compromise flight safety and integrity for lower fares. If American airlines and flight departments had better standards for flight crew scheduling, they could have saved money. Overall, safety is the number one priority. Pilot fatigue is estimated to contribute to 15-20% of all fatal aviation accidents related to human error. It is precisely at the moment when most people would feel "dead tired" at the end of a long day at work, that pilots must be fully alert to make critical decisions, concentrate and ensure a safe landing. In any case, arriving at your destination safely is much more important than the price of the ticket