Updated 27 February 2014
The following field duty limits are recommended as EOL guidelines to be implemented across all EOL Facilities. These guidelines provide an acceptable level of physical and mental performance to carry out safe and efficient observing system operations. It should be noted that aircraft operations fall under the specific guidelines of the RAF Safety Management System, therefore RAF crew duty limits for flight personnel are rules and not guidelines, and must be strictly adhered to.
(1) Best efforts will be made to apply similar staff rotations to all EOL personnel associated with the same field campaign.
(2) A maximum field duty day should not exceed 14 hours in a 24-hour period. Maximum field duty time begins when EOL staff reports to a designated place to begin preparations for scheduled operations, and ends once operations on site are completed. Off-duty accommodation should be as close to the duty location as practical. If no suitable accommodations are close by, transit time may be counted towards the maximum field duty time. This will be considered on a case-to-case basis.
(3) EOL staff should not work more than three consecutive days of maximum field duty days.
(4) All EOL employees are permitted and encouraged to take one day off after six consecutive working days. No EOL employee should work for more than nine consecutive days without a mandatory day off. A day off will include two local nights, and cover at least 32 hours.
(5) Project-wide “Hard Down Days” are mandatory days off for all project participants including EOL staff. During Hard Down Days, no access will be granted to observing systems managed by EOL. To accommodate event driven weather conditions, Hard Down Days can be called at any time during a project. Additional accommodations/restrictions will apply depending on a specific observing system (see tables below).
(6) EOL staff must be given at least a 10-hour rest period between the end of one and the start of the next working day. This ensures that staff has had sufficient time for uninterrupted rest plus time for meals, transportation and relaxation.
(7) Short meetings for mission planning and briefings may be scheduled on days off if they do not interfere with the 10-hour rest period and do not conflict with flight crew duty limitations.
(8) If appropriate, the Project Manager, Pilot in Command and/or Operations Director will have the option of calling for additional down time if fatigue is a factor.
(9) Scheduling for no more than 60 hours/week worked per staff must be done from the outset. Additional accommodations/restrictions will apply depending on a specific observing system (see tables below) to accommodate real time conditions. Cumulative duty hours may not exceed 250 hours within a 30-day period.
(10) EOL staff assigned to operations away from their home base shall not be scheduled for deployment periods exceeding 31 consecutive days. If desired, EOL staff may accept assignment for up to 6 weeks (42 days). However, deployments beyond 31 consecutive days will have to be jointly evaluated by the employee, supervisor, and Facility Manager. Assignments over 42 days require explicit approval by the EOL Director.
(11) Following a field assignment, EOL staff will return to their home base for at least two weeks before returning to the field. Alternatively, EOL staff can take Personal Time Off (on site or off site) for two weeks.
(12) If significant time zone changes occur, additional rest periods will be implemented to prevent a decrease in performance due to the disruption of circadian rhythms.
(13) Best efforts will be made to work with the respective scientific teams early on to implement similar field duty limits for non-EOL participants, and to make sure that EOL field duty limits will have no negative impact on a project.
Please note that for the airborne projects, compliance with the crew duty periods outlined below is a requirement. Any extensions, changes, and exceptions must be approved by the Project Manager through the established crew duty management process.
Maximum Flight Operations – Any 24-hour period |
10 flight hours |
Maximum Flight Operations – Any consecutive 7 days |
40 flight hours; 60 duty hours |
Maximum Flight Operations – Any 30-day period |
120 flight hours |
Maximum consecutive working days |
6 days |
Maximum crew duty day |
14 consecutive hours |
Minimum crew rest period |
12 consecutive hours |
Maximum consecutive days of Maximum Duty Days |
2 days |
Definition of Maximum Duty Day |
More than 10 hours (no more than 14 hours allowed) |
Definition of Night Duty |
Show time at or earlier than 5 am LT Landing after midnight |
The time required for the switch from day to night time operations |
36 hours |
Maximum takeoff time shift during night operations, from the previous night's take-off |
3 hours |
Aircraft crew duty limits apply to all EOL staff flying or working on the aircraft and/or aircraft instrumentation. Projects requiring support above and beyond the single crew duty limits will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Maximum Operations – any 24-hour period |
Up to 11 driving hours |
Maximum Operations – any consecutive 7 days |
60 duty hours |
Maximum Operations – any 30 day period |
250 duty hours |
Maximum consecutive working days |
No more than 9 days |
Maximum field duty day |
14 consecutive hours |
Minimum rest period |
10 consecutive hours |
Maximum consecutive days of maximum field duty |
3 days |
Time required before restarting of clock* |
34 off duty hours |
Definition of Night Duty |
Midnight to 6 am |
Time required for switch from day to night time operations |
36 hours |
* Drivers can "restart" the 7-day consecutive working days period after a driver has 34 consecutive hours off duty.
For mobile operations, EOL will apply the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)’s rules for the commercial trucking industry (http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/topics/hos/index.htm). The main purpose of this is to prevent accidents caused by driver fatigue by requiring drivers to take a daily minimum period of rest and a longer “weekend” rest to combat cumulative effects accrued on a weekly basis. Since it has also been shown that driver alertness and performance are more consistently related to time-of-day than to time-on-task and that drowsiness episodes are about eight times more likely to occur between midnight and 6 a.m. than during other times, EOL may apply additional limitations for night time operations.
Intensive Observation Periods (IOPs) must be communicated by the PIs to EOL staff at least 12 hours, and preferably 24 hours, in advance if anticipated operations are consistently in the same diurnal cycle, i.e., daytime or nighttime.
For maximum duration operations, each vehicle must have at least two drivers.
Maximum Operations – any consecutive 7 days |
60 hours/week |
Maximum Operations – any 30 day period |
250 duty hours |
Maximum consecutive working days |
No more than 9 days |
Maximum field duty day |
14 consecutive hours |
Minimum rest period |
10 consecutive hours |
Maximum consecutive days of maximum field duty |
3 days |
Definition of Night Duty |
Midnight to 6 am |
The time required for the switch from day to night time operations |
36 hours |
While these observing systems are deployed, a day off must be planned at no greater than nine-day intervals. Scheduling may be flexible to accommodate real-time observational needs conditions.
Intensive Observation Periods (IOPs) must be communicated by the PIs to EOL staff at least 12 hours, and preferably 24 hours, in advance if anticipated operations are consistently in the same diurnal cycle, i.e., daytime or nighttime.