Dead Tired:Pilot Fatigue--Aviation's Insidious Killer

Dead Tired is written by a retired commercial pilot who spent far too much time in the cockpit in a state of dead tired. A few of his personal sleep deprivation anecdotes are related in the book. However, the primary theme is an in-depth view of the current issue of cockpit fatigue and the FAA s severely belated response to a serious aviation safety problem. The cumbersome interaction of the FAA, pilot unions, the NTSB, and the powerful special interest groups and lobbyists is revealed. Special emphasis is given to the Continental flight 3407 accident at Buffalo in February, 2009 and the importance of a group who refer to themselves as The Families of Continental Flight 3407. They were instrumental in the current proposed rule changes that will help reduce the number of tired pilots in the cockpit. Elucidation of the cargo pilot exemption is provided by the author, as well as the considerations leading to the seemingly inexplicable exemption. The role of politics in aviation safety will rear up its ugly head. An additional bonus is educational information for non-pilots as well as pilots, since the author discusses many of the physiological and mental symptoms of sleep deprivation. He also provides suggested fatigue countermeasures that can be very beneficial for anyone who drives a car in a fatigued condition or works long hours on the back-side-of-the-clock.