- DCU Business School published the fatigue research.
- The study implements the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale.
- Captain Patrick Mullen co-authored the article.
- Findings address short-haul night freight operations.
- The research appears in the Journal of Air Transport Management.
DCU Business School, spearheaded by researchers like Anna Donnla O’Hagan. has published new research on the implementation of the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale for pilots. The study focuses on short-haul night freight operations and examines how the scale improves fatigue awareness and reporting confidence.
Patrick Mullen from easyJet and Viktoriia Ivannikova from DCU Business School authored the article in the Journal of Air Transport Management.
The research focussed on sleep deprivation and occupational stress within commercial aviation, which encompasses short-haul night freight and passenger flights. These studies, archived in the DCU DORAS Open Access Repository, identify how nighttime “red-eye” and early-start short-haul duties disrupt the body’s natural circadian rhythms.
Findings reveal that cumulative sleep debt and 24 hours of wakefulness significantly impair a pilot’s cognitive flexibility, sustained attention, and multi-tasking abilities.
Higher instances of sleep disturbance in night-shift operations are strongly linked to elevated levels of self-reported anxiety and depression among flight crews.
The research investigates the validity of tools like the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) as an early-warning indicator to help pilots and operators objectively identify dangerous levels of cockpit fatigue before safety is compromised.
The scientific community broadly categorizes the fatigue drivers unique to these types of operations into distinct categories that impact both flight crews and local-haul freight drivers.
Given the rigorous safety guidelines in the European Union (e.g., European Aviation Safety Agency regulations and Flight Time Limitations), DCU’s ongoing research stresses that current policies may need further adaptation to mitigate the fatigue unique to short-haul, intense-frequency flight and freight schedules.
The findings support stronger Fatigue Risk Management Systems and better communication on fatigue. Researchers explored structured assessment tools to enhance safety culture in aviation organisations.
The publication became available for review following the release. It addresses fatigue reporting in operational contexts. The study advances understanding of safety practices in freight operations.
