U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration 

# Advisory Circular Subject: Fatigue Training Date: DRAFT Initiated by: AFS - 200 AC No: AC - 120 - FT Change: 1. PURPOSE . This advisory cir cular (AC) presents guidelines for developing and implementing a f atigue t raining module for flightcrew member s and personnel involved in scheduling and managing flightcrew member s. These guidelines apply to certificate holders conducting operations under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part s 11 7 and 1 2 1. This AC presents guidelines for certificate holders who operate with a FAA

- approved fatigue risk management system (FRMS), or are requesting FAA approval for an FRMS on the development of an FRMS education and awareness training program. This AC presents acceptable means, but not necessarily the only means , that certificate holders may comply with fatigue training requirements prescribed in part 117, § 117.11. 2. DISCUSSION. Each certifica te holder conducting operations under part 121 must have a Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA )

- approved fatigue training module as prescribed in § 117.11. The training module must focus on the certificate holder and flightcrew member ’s joint responsibili ty for ensuring that fatigue does not affect a flightcrew member ’s ability to report to work fit for duty and to operate a flight, or series of flights , with safety. 3. AUDIENCE. This AC applies to all part 121 certificate holders, employees of the certificat e holder responsible for administering the provisions of part 117 including flightcrew member s, dispatchers, individuals involved in the scheduling of flightcrew member s, individuals involved in operational control, and any employee providing management ov ersight of those areas. 4. RELATED REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS. Title 14 CFR part 91 ; §§ 117.7 , 117.11 ; and part 121 . 5. RELATED READING MATERIAL.

**•** AC 120

- 100 , Basics of Aviation Fatigue . **•** AC 120

- 103 , Fatigue Risk Management Systems for Aviation Safety . **•** “ Proposed draf t ” AC 120

- XX, Fitness for Duty .AC 120

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Page 2 Par 6 6. DEFINITIONS. a. Fatigue . Fatigue is a physiological state of reduced mental or physical performance capability resulting from lack of sleep or increased physical activity that can reduce a crewmember’s alertness and ability to safely operate an aircraft or perform safety

- related duties. b. Fit for D uty . Fit for duty means being physiologically and mentally prepared and capable of performing assigned duties in

- flight with the highest degree of safety. This function also assumes the flightcrew member is properly rested . c. FRMS . The FRMS is a management system for operators to use for mitigating the effects of fatigue in their particular operations. It is a data

- driven process and systematic method used to continuously monitor and manag e safety risks associated with fatigue

- related error. 7. BACKGROUND. The FAA believes fatigue

- based training requirements are critical to mitigating the risk of fatigue by ensuring that both flightcrew member s and certificate holders understand the effects of fatigue on the safety of flight. a. Fatigue Education and Training Program. Each certificate holder must develop and implement a FAA

- approved fatigue education and training program designed to ensure: (1) Flightcrew member s are educated to the degree that they a re able to understand how their personal behavior can unwittingly lead to fatigue and how to adjust their behavior accordingly. (2) Employees involved in operational control and the scheduling of flightcrew member s, or any employee providing management oversig ht of those areas, must be educated to the degree that they understand the effects of fatigue on the safety of flight and modify their scheduling practices accordingly. b. Additional Training Programs. If a certificate holder chooses to have a FAA

- approved FR MS, an additional training program must be developed and implemented which would be designed to address an alternate means of fatigue mitigation tailored to a certificate holder’s specific operation that provides an equivalent level of safety. 8. RECOMMENDATI ONS . a. Fatigue Training Program. The f atigue t raining p rogram module must be a part of a certificate holder’s approved ground training curriculum. This training module should provide instruction and information in the areas of general fatigue science and fat igue countermeasures and should contain sufficient elements or events to ensure that a student will receive adequate training and knowledge as prescribed in § 117.11. At a minimum, the f atigue t raining p rogram must include the following subject areas: (1) FAA regulatory requirements for flight, duty and rest, and National Transportation Safety Board ( NTSB ) recommendations on fatigue management; (2) The basics of fatigue, including sleep fundamentals and circadian rhythms;DATE DRAFT AC 120

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Par 8 Page 3 (3) The causes of fatigue; (4) The effect of fatigu e on performance; (5) Fatigue countermeasures, prevention , and mitigation; (6) The influence of lifestyle, including nutrition, exercise, and family life, on fatigue; (7) Familiarity with sleep disorders; (8) The impact of commuting on fatigue; (9) Flightcrew member responsib ility for ensuring adequate rest and fitness for duty; and (10) The effect of operating through and within multiple time zones. b. Subject Areas (Required Elements). The subject areas listed above , which are the required elements , must be contained in the fatigue training module and will be expanded on to contain subsets of information related to each required element. The following include s ome examples: (1) FAA regulatory requirements for flight, duty and rest, and NTSB recommendations on fatigue management . **•** Review o f applicable parts 91, 117 , and 121 . **•** Review of NTSB safety recommendations regarding fatigue . **•** Effects of fatigue on flight operations . (2) Basics of fatigue . **•** Basic terms and definitions related to the science of fatigue . **•** Basic sleep fundamentals . **•** Overview of c ircadian rhythms . **•** Signs and s ymptoms of fatigue . (3) Causes of fatigue . **•** Shift work . **•** Workload . **•** Cumulative d uty .AC 120

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Page 4 Par 8 **•** Time zone changes . **•** Illness and s tress . (4) The effect of fatigue on performance . **•** Judgment error . **•** Loss of situational awareness/ r educed attention . **•** Degrada tion of performance . **•** Increased reaction time . **•** Diminished memory . (5) Fatigue countermeasures . **•** Prevention . **•** Adequate r est . **•** Nutrition . (6) Mitigation . **•** Rest management . **•** Rest facilities . **•** Scheduling practices . (7) Lifestyle i nfluence s . **•** Nutrition . **•** Exercise . **•** Family life . **•** Alco hol and stimulants . (8) Familiarity with sleep disorders . **•** Insomnia . **•** Sleep apnea .DATE DRAFT AC 120

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Par 8 Page 5 **•** Restless l egs s yndrome . (9) The impact of commuting on fatigue . **•** Responsible commuting and acceptable commuting practices . **•** Travel delays . **•** Lack of adequate rest . (10) Flightcrew member and c ertificate holder’s responsibility for ensuring adequate rest and fitness for duty . (a) Flightcrew member responsibility . **•** Responsibility in accordance with § 117.5 . **•** Rest accommodations and quality of rest . **•** Personal strategies for preventing and managing fatigu e risk . **•** Responsibility to report fatigue . **•** Fatigue recognition , personal assessment of fatigue , and identifying signs of fatigue in others . (b) Certificate h older’s r esponsibility . **•** Responsibility in accordance with § 117.5 . **•** Evaluation of flightcrew member ’s fit ness for duty . **•** Actions in the event of a flightcrew member ’s report of fatigue . (11) The effect of operating through and within multiple time zones.

**•** Sleep p hase s hift . **•** Circadian rhythm disruption (“jet lag”) . **•** Operations in w esterly directions . **•** Operations in eas terly directions . **•** Acclimation . c. Fatigue Risk Management Training Program. Certificate holders who have a FAA

- approved FRMS, or are requesting FAA approval for an FRMS , must have an educationAC 120

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Page 6 Par 8 and awareness training program in accordance with § 117.7(a)(2). L ike the training program prescribed in p aragraph 7a, the FRMS training program module must be part of a certificate holder’s approved ground training curriculum. This training module should contain in

- depth information and instruction regarding the certifi cate holder’s methods for fatigue prevention and mitigation. Below is a list of minimum subject areas along with subset information that should be contained in a certificate holder’s FAA

- approved FRMS t raining p rogram : (1) Overview of the FRMS concept . **•** Definit ion . **•** Purpose . **•** Structural components . **•** Relationship to Safety Management System . **•** AC 120

- 100 , Basics of Aviation Fatigue . **•** AC 120

- 103 , Fatigue Risk Management Systems for Aviation Safety . (2) Tools for an effective FRMS . **•** Fatigue analysis methods . **•** Identification an d management of aviation fatigue drivers . **•** Fatigue mitigation approaches . **•** Positive safety culture . (3) Components of an FRMS . **•** Fatigue risk management policy . **•** Education and awareness training . **•** Fatigue analysis and reporting system . **•** Fatigue monitoring methods . **•** Fa tigue

- related incident reporting process . **•** FRMS performance evaluation . **•** Continuous i mprovement process . (4) Roles and responsibilities .DATE DRAFT AC 120

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Par 8 Page 7 **•** Certificate holder responsibilities . **•** Crewmember/employee responsibilities . **•** FAA responsibilities . (5) FRMS i mplementation . **•** Policie s and procedures . **•** Organization and personnel . **•** Fatigue Management Steering Committee . **•** Tools and methods . **•** Training and awareness . (6) Safe scheduling policies and procedures . **•** Proactive and adaptive fatigue mitigation . **•** Work schedule oversight and monitoring . **•** Crew augmentation . **•** Circumstance beyond the control of the certificate holder . (7) Records and reports . **•** Schedule accuracy . **•** Reports of fatigue by flightcrew member s . **•** Fatigue

- related events . (8) Continuous performance improvement process . **•** FRMS performance evaluation . **•** Wor k schedule modeling and fatigue risk analysis . **•** Management and mitigation of fatigue risk . **•** Assessment, feedback , and c orrective action . d. Training Requirement. The minimum prescribed training hours for a certificate holder’s approved f atigue t raining p rogram, in accordance with § 117.11 are:AC 120

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Page 8 Par 8 **•** Five hours for i nitial t raining . **•** Two hours for r ecurrent t raining . NOTE: For certificate holder’s who have obtained or requesting FAA approval for an FRMS , the minimum training hours for the FRMS training program should be no le ss than those listed above ( as prescribed by § 117.11 ) . e. Continued Adequacy. The FAA recognizes that the study of fatigue and fatigue mitigation is ongoing. Changes may need to be made to training programs even after approval by the FAA. Accordingly, whenev er the Administrator finds that revisions are necessary for the continued adequacy of an approved fatigue education and training program, the certificate holder must, after notification, make any changes in the program that are deemed necessary by the Admi nistrator. The FAA anticipates that such changes would be implemented through the agency’s operations specifications as provided by § 119.51, which would give carriers an opportunity to provide input and appeal rights. 9. CONTACT INFORMATION . For more informa tion about this AC , please contact the Air Transportation Division, AFS

- 200, at ( 202 ) 267

- 6188.

John. M. Allen Director, Flight Standards Service