B737 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Fatigue
Other fatigue
General Work Refused
Staffing; Company Policy; Human Factors
I am a 15 year Captain at a major airline. I cannot hold a line; but I do get my choice of reserve lines. I intentionally bid reserve lines with call out times that keep me off the all nighters. This month I am on a [call out time line] that starts at XA00 and ends at XN59. Recently I was called approximately 1 hour into my [call out time line] (XA50) and put into ''rest'' so I could fly a two leg all nighter with a sit in ZZZ; returning to my base with a release time just 10 minutes prior to my ending. I was rested for my daytime call; which means I could not fall asleep on command in the afternoon and be rested for an all nighter. I did my best and was able to get minimal sleep. I reported for the flight on time but we departed about a half hour late due to connecting passengers. Due to headwinds we actually returned to base late and my duty day ended 2 minutes AFTER the legal [call out time line] extension. Due to fatigue I didn't realize that I could potentially exceed my extended duty day prior to push; and I didn't realize I had exceeded my extended duty day until a week later. This is the second time this has happened to me in the last year. Last time it happened I was unable to sleep in the afternoon and I called the Chief Pilot to discuss it with him. He advised that I call in fatigued since I was unable to rest; and flying an all nighter would not be safe. I did call in fatigued and crew scheduling put the following note on my line 'Pilot too fatigued to fly.' While this is technically correct; the implication here is that I just didn't want to be a team player and I was trying to get out of work. Later I heard thru the grapevine that a senior management employee was looking at me because of this call. It may not be intentional but this feels like old fashioned pilot pushing to accommodate the schedule with less than adequate pilot staffing. Due to the pressure I felt after the fatigue call I felt I needed to fly this flight. I was extremely exhausted on the last leg home; even with the assistance of strong coffee. I feel my performance was not where it should have been; and the thought went thru my mind that I was responsible for the 150 lives on board; yet here I sat at the controls barely able to keep my eyes open. I also thought how ridiculous this was; given the fact that our company was making record profits and our motto is ''number 1 in safety and regulatory compliance.' Would you feel comfortable putting your family on board knowing what I'm telling you here? I know the standard answer is that it's my responsibility as a pilot to make sure I am fit to fly before I do; however; with the pressure (real or perceived) to accommodate the schedule I felt like I had to make that flight go. In the future; I will be much more willing to call in fatigued; even if I haven't flown that day or week; and even if I do get a smart remark on my line written by crew schedulers who can only hurt themselves if they fall asleep at work; and yes; even if it costs me my job. I love my job and I love my airline; but this practice of [call out time line] flipping and keeping pilots awake close to 24 hours because we are understaffed and unable to have adequate reserves is unacceptable. Considering the recent fatal accidents where fatigue was listed as a contributing factor; I am surprised that our airline would accept the risk of having a pilot at the controls who has been awake for 24 hours. The extension provision should be struck from our contract immediately because it's the right thing; and the safe thing to do.
Air carrier Captain addressed his concerns about his company's scheduling practices for reserve pilots and what he considers pilot pushing via management oversight of fatigue calls.