Endurance management: Maximizing the Air Force's most vital asset

Mobility Forum, Jul/Aug 2003 by O'Brien, David, Rock, T M

The mission never sleeps. Of course we mortal airmen must sleep. The steady beat of the Air Force goes on no matter the season, the weather, or the most recent overseas contingency. As we have transitioned to the Expeditionary Air Force, we have proven that we are capable of accomplishing more than we ever dreamed possible. And our pace has increased even more dramatically since 9-11, not only deploying to the CENTCOM Theater of Operations, but also protecting our homeland. And despite the awesome machines and technology that our Air Force brings to bear, the mission still relies most critically on those in uniform. Thus, in large degree, the key to mission effectiveness is taking full advantage of the "human weapon system".

It takes dozens of personnel to successfully launch one aircraft in the air. Akin to an aircraft engine, when the human engine is not running on all cylinders, the resulting hiccups can affect the mission all the way down the line. And like the routine maintenance we provide for aircraft engines, the human weapons system needs rest to overcome normal wear and tear of physical and mental fatigue. Air Force leadership has recognized that the human being occasionally experiences critical failures and has taken many steps to make us more aware, more safety conscious. We all know about the 101 critical days of summer, we all practice Operational Risk Management. Aircrew members are highly trained to use Crew Resource Management. These programs are vital to enhancing mission effectiveness, but it does not stop there.

How we care for ourselves and our troops on a daily basis plays an important role in mission effectiveness. Fatigue continues to be a major factor in many Air Force ground and air mishaps. We do not have the luxury of a 9 to 5 workday. Controllers are in the tower, maintainers are turning wrenches, security forces are on patrol, and crews are in the air during all hours of the day and night. Our people are traveling across numerous time zones, setting up shop and taking care of business. Fatigue will eventually take a toll if not properly managed. Thomas Edison's desire to invent the light bulb was driven by the idea that if one could bring light indoors, people could work 24 hours a day, revolutionizing industrial production. Although a brilliant inventor, Edison did not understand human biology. Over the years, leaders, supervisors, doctors and families concluded that this theory was misguided. Without sleep, the natural results of fatigue are well known to most of us: impaired judgment, slowed reaction time, reduced motor speed, decreased situational awareness and poor attention to detail; compromised skill sets that are essential for our highly technical and time-sensitive operations. Sleep remains an essential part of life.

Fatigue causes mistakes, creates mishaps and costs lives. Amazingly, when daylight savings time occurs and we lose only one hour of sleep, traffic accidents rise across the country! Fatigue impairs our actions and decision-making capabilities. Fatigue poses a serious threat to mission effectiveness and safety. Fatigue kills more airmen in motor vehicle accidents than any other factor. The Air Force takes fatigue seriously enough to mandate crew rest for aircrew, and now we are expanding that knowledge to all Air Force personnel. We all have to understand that even though we possess incredible work ethic and superb motivation we also have physical limitations. Supervisors have the responsibility to balance mission priorities with personnel capabilities and capacity. They must be involved with their troops who accomplish the daily tasks and be attentive for warning signs. Are "simple" mistakes being made? Are technical forms not fully completed? Are troops easily agitated over minor issues? Do they just look a little worn out? Have they lost their sense of humor? If we notice these things, it is critical to ensure we are not needlessly fatiguing the troops.

So what is the fix? First, realize that fatigue is inevitable, but managing endurance and preventing excessive fatigue is our pragmatic goal. Sleep is the foundation of fatigue recovery. Most people require 7 to 8 hours of sleep per day to avoid cumulative fatigue. Studies demonstrate a small increase in errors when people sleep 7 hours per day versus 8 hours. Most individuals experience a clear drop in performance when sleeping 6 hours per day. Performance drops precipitously when sleep is 5 hours or less per day. Personal discipline must come into play here, but education is key as well. We must put more emphasis on our sleep habits. Keep our sleep time sacred. If you are constantly dragging yourself out of bed each morning, your body is telling you something: you are not getting enough sleep. It is human nature to cut corners on sleep because other things seem more important. The sleeping environment is also important. Sleep is more easily started and maintained in a quiet, dark, temperature-controlled room. Ideally, we go to bed and awake at the same times every day - though clearly many of us cannot maintain that sort of stability with our military commitments. Avoid the use of alcohol and caffeine several hours before bedtime, they both interfere with the rapid eye movement (REM) phase of sleep, vital to body and brain recuperation.