Emirates has rejected allegations that its pilots are suffering from flight fatigue.
The allegations surfaced after the Dubai-based Flydubai crash in Rostov-on-Don last week (see news March 2016).
Both Flydubai and Emirates are owned by tjhe Government of Dubai, but are separate airlines.
Although the cause of the crash is still unknown, reports both on the BBC (“FlyDubai crash pilot ‘was due to leave job over fatigue’) and website RT have suggested that flight fatigue on the part of the pilots played a part.
In addition, RT in its report #Flydubaigate spreads: Now exhausted Emirates airline pilots tell RT of overwork says it has been contacted by a number of Emirates pilots complaining about fatigue because of manipulation of flight time limitations (FTL) scheme.
Emirates has rejected these allegations. In a statement to Business Traveller, a spokesperson said
“Emirates strictly adheres to the state-approved flight time limitations (FTL) scheme. We never compromise safety and always operate within the legal regulatory requirements with regard to flying times, operating hours, and layover times in between flights for our pilots.
“We regularly require all pilots to undergo medical assessments, covering both physical and psychological aspects, as part of their medical renewal process. We also have a proactive Fatigue Management and education process. Emirates also encourages open dialogue and has systems in place to facilitate that and in fact we have an open forum for pilots to engage with the management team to voice their concerns.”
All 55 passengers and seven crew died in the Flydubai crash.
Tom Otley
