Det amerikanska Luftfartsverket, FAA har alltid varit i säng med flygbolagen. Kan man bara få flygplanen att lyfta så ner kommer dom alltid. Kanske inte alltid på rätt plats, som i Hudsonfloden eller ens helskinnade, som i Buffalo, men är det verkligen något som Luftfartsverket skall behöva oroa sig för? Skall man upp i luften får man väl vara beredd att ta risker?

Nu senast gäller frågan flygsäkerheten på extremt långa sträckor som till Bombay. Flygsäkerhetsexpertena säger att piloterna måste få sova medan flygbolagen protesterar.

Christine Negroni skriver i New York Times:Itineraries – A Dispute Over Rest for Long-Distance Pilots – NYTimes.com

In October, the F.A.A. issued an operations bulletin for ‘ultra long-range flights ‘ that doubled the amount of time pilots and flight attendants must remain at their overseas destination. The change to 48 hours from 24 is intended to make sure that flight crews get two full periods of sleep before making the return flight.

But seven airlines have asked the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington to set aside the new requirements, arguing that they would impose ‘substantial burdens and costs. ‘ The F.A.A.’s plan was based on policies that Delta Air Lines had initiated when it began flying to Mumbai, India, in 2006. And Delta has filed a petition with the court arguing that a reversal of the rules could hurt its ability to ‘sustain safe and economically viable operations. ‘

Och Bombay, ska man dit får man väl vara beredd att ta risker hur som helst?

Those magnificent men in their flying machines. They can fly upside down with their feet in the air, they don’t think of danger they really don’t care. SÃ¥ varför skall dom behöva sova hela tiden? Dom kan väl flyga pÃ¥ autopiloten?