What is fatigue? One definition states, "fatigue is a period of mental or bodily activity; characterized by a lessened capacity for work and reduced efficiency of accomplishment usually accompanied by a feeling of weariness, sleepiness or irritability." Simply stated, fatigue is the body and mind weakening due to certain factors such as stress, lack of sleep and physical exertion. These by themselves or in combination can diminish a pilot's productivity. In this paper I will focus on the relationship between the causal factors of fatigue and its role in aviation.
Lack of sleep is one significant factor that triggers fatigue in a pilot. Sleep deprivation can affect 47 million adults, or almost a quarter of the American adult population. "Inadequate sleep can affect judgment, reaction-time, hand eye coordination, memory and general wellbeing." (neurology.com) All of these factors must be functioning at their highest levels in order to facilitate an aircraft efficiently. Lack of......
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