Rule Would Boost To 10 Hours’ Rest After 14 Hours Duty Time

The Department of Transportation has proposed a new regulation requiring flight attendants in service to have a longer rest period between shifts. The proposed rule would bump the period up to 10 consecutive hours of rest, when scheduled for duty periods 14 hours or less.

Under current regulations, they are required to have a minimum of 9 hours of consecutive rest. In 2018’s FAA Reauthorization Act, Congress issued a directive to the FAA to increase the minimum rest period after scheduled duty of 14 hours or less in domestic, flag, and supplemental flights. The current regulations only grant a 9-hour rest period, which can be reduced to 8 hours under certain circumstances. The act also required the FAA to issue a prohibition such reductions of rest periods under any circumstances. The FAA’s proposal now meets the criteria, which has been the result of collaboration with air carriers and public input. 

Flight attendants have collected additional responsibilities and duties over time, becoming a multifunction crew member almost unrecognizable from their origins. Now, they hold responsibilities in first aid, aircraft evacuations, inflight fire response, disruptive passenger management, and on a bad day, even crowd control. Their requisite knowledge across possible aircraft emergencies could be endangered when sufficiently fatigued.

“Flight attendants play a critical safety role in keeping passengers safe on every flight and especially in emergencies. This proposal helps reduce fatigue so they can perform this critical role,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson (pictured).

Public comments on the draft rule are open for 60 days, after which a final version is published. 

FMI: www.faa.gov