Date: 201907
Local time of day: 0001-0600
Aircraft: Commercial Fixed Wing
Operator: Air Carrier
Operating under: Part 121
Mission: Passenger
Reporter organization: Air Carrier
Reporter function: Flight Attendant (On Duty)
Reporter qualification: Flight Attendant Current
Human factors: Fatigue; Distraction; Confusion; Physiological - Other
Anomaly: Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Other / Unknown
Detector: Person Flight Attendant
When detected: In-flight
Result: General None Reported / Taken
Contributing factors: Company Policy; Human Factors; Staffing
Primary problem: Company Policy

Narrative: I'm a Flight Attendant who is extremely concerned about red-eye trips our Company is building which include multiple legs; long sits and long duty days. We need the FAA to help us limit the duty times involved when a red-eye is flown.An example would be a trip which I recently flew. On the 2nd duty day; report time was [time] with one leg to Airport X; a brutal 3:20 hour sit and one leg to Airport Y ending the following morning. It was blocked as a 12:10 duty period but ended up being 12:28. I will tell you from personal experience that this pairing was unsafe and unhealthy.During this trip; I began feeling the symptoms of exhaustion set in by the time we boarded the red-eye segment. I became sleepy; lost concentration and had difficulty focusing on simple tasks. As the red-eye flight continued; my symptoms worsened. I felt confused; dazed; fatigued; foggy and delayed in my responses. The main concern going through my mind during this time was what would I do and how would I react if an emergency happened? Would I be able to assess conditions effectively; make quick decisions and keep our passengers safe? I questioned these things many times during the red-eye flight. These trips are simply unnatural; unsafe and unhealthy. Flight attendants need better protections when duty periods include red-eyes. These trips negatively impact our duties; risk the safety of our passengers and ourselves and are highly detrimental to our quality of life.Currently; we have a provision in our contract that limits duty periods to 11:30 scheduled and 13:00 actual for report times that begin after 1900. I believe this was built into the contract to minimize duty times when red-eyes are concerned. However; I believe the Company is getting around these protections by scheduling duty times that include red-eyes to begin BEFORE 1900; thus making these trips technically 'legal'. I can tell you from personal experience; however; that they are not safe. Flight attendants are not machines. We are human beings who suffer from sleep deprivation just like anyone else. And I believe the Company is being completely irresponsible by continuing to build these long duty days with red-eyes. The Company is risking the safety of its passengers and the safety of its flight attendants by continuing to build these trips.I hope for the sake of our passengers and our flight attendants; the FAA will help flight attendants (mostly reserves who get stuck with these trips) and set established duty time provisions for flight attendants when red-eyes are included.Please help keep our passengers and our flying partners safe!!!Thank you!!




Synopsis: Flight Attendant reported air carrier scheduling of duty period resulting in extreme fatigue.