More than half of Brazil’s commercial airline pilots have nodded off while at the controls of a plane a survey has found.
The Brazilian Association of Civil Aviation Pilots (Abrapac) interviewed 1,235 pilots for a study which found 57% admitted to falling asleep during a domestic flight
That figure rose to 70% for longer international flights.
It also found 20% of pilots who said they had never fallen asleep admitted knowing a colleague who had during a domestic flight.
Pilots interviewed highlighted work hours, night shifts and inadequate rest time between work shifts as the main reasons for causing fatigue on the job.
"An unintentional siesta can be extremely dangerous, and failing to remain alert when it is needed is dangerous, because in an emergency or unexpected situation, a rapid reaction time is essential," the agency concluded.
"Another factor to be underscored is the number of consecutive nights of work, which on average is four nights," the study also said.
Previous studies showed the risk of an aviation accident occurring due to working four consecutive night shifts is around 36% higher than when working a sequence of just one night shift, the agency said.
