In theory

Here, four paragraphs must be taken into account:

ORO.FTL.105. Definitions (8)

‘Disruptive schedule’ means a crew member’s roster which disrupts the sleep oppor- tunity during the optimal sleep time window by comprising an FDP or a combination of FDPs which encroach, start or finish during any portion of the day or of the night where a crew member is acclimatised. A schedule may be disruptive due to early starts, late finishes or night duties.

ORO.CS.FTL.1.235 Rest Periods (a) (1):

If a transition from a late finish/night duty to an early start is planned at home base, the rest period between the 2 FDPs include 1 local night.

ORO.FTL.105. Definitions (8) (b) (Belgium chose to be a “late type” country)

A ‘late type’ disruptive schedule means:

(i) for ‘early start’ a duty period starting in the period between 05:00 and 06:59 in the time zone to which a crew member is accli- matised; and

(ii) for ‘late finish’ a duty period finishing in the period between 00:00 and 01:59 in the time zone to which a crew member is acclimatised;

ORO.FTL.105. Definitions (9)

A ‘night duty’ means a duty period encroach- ing any portion of the period between 02:00 and 04:59 in the time zone to which the crew is acclimatised;

In practice

What does this mean in plain English? If you end your Duty (= Flight Duty + Sign-out time) after midnight and before 5:00, you cannot sign in the next day, in your home base, in the time window between 5:00 and 6:00. Note however that you can sign in for another night duty before 5:00!

• EASA: ‘Base on Air OPS Easy Access Rules_ Rev.10_March 2018’: https://bit.ly/2Ndxoje
• Council Directive 2000/79/EC on working time in civil aviation: https://bit.ly/2zGLeXW
• EASA FTL FAQs (19.09.2018): https://bit. ly/2y1owHZ
• Your airline OPS Manual or CLA

Legal requirements by EASA

a) ORO.FTL.235.(d):

Recurrent extended recovery rest periods Flight time specification schemes shall spec- ify recurrent extended recovery rest periods to compensate for cumulative fatigue. The minimum recurrent extended recovery rest period shall be 36 hours, including 2 local nights, and in any case the time between the end of one recurrent extended recovery rest period and the start of the next extended recovery rest period shall not be more than 168 hours. The recurrent extended recovery rest period shall be increased to 2 local days twice every month.

168 hours = 7 x 24 hours. Most extreme case:

7 Days ON – 36 hours OFF – 168 hours ON – 36 hours OFF – 7 Days ON – 36 hours OFF – 168 hours ON.

2 times during one calendar month of those 36 hours must be increased to 2 local days each month. So you must have at least 2 days + 2 days + 36 hours off in a month. So minimum 5 days OFF a month. Note that these are only the EASA rules. The Euro- pean Work Law is strikter, but more on that later.

b) ORO.FTL.105 Definitions (23):

‘Single day free of duty’ means, for the purpose of complying with the provisions of Council Directive 2000/79/EC, a time free of all duties and standby consisting of one day and two local nights, which is notified in advance. A rest period may be included as part of the single day free of duty.

c) ORO.FTL.105.Definitions (16):

‘Local night’ means a period of 8 hours falling between 22:00 and 08:00 local time;

Combination of point 1.b. and 1.c.

This means that in order for a day to be taken into account for Council Directive 2000/79/EC it must have 2 local nights and a local day in between those local nights. The latest the first local night can start is 00:00 LT. The earliest the second local night can stop is 06:00 LT.

Legal requirements by European Work Law:

Council Directive 2000/79/EC – Clause 3 & Clause 9:

Mobile staff in civil aviation are entitled to paid annual leave of at least four weeks which can only be replaced by other allowances in case of termination of employment. In addition they are entitled to seven days off per month and at least 96 days per year.

This means that flying staff is entitled to a minimum of 96 + 4*2 = 104 days off in a calendar year.

This also means that the minimum days OFF during a month must be 7.
Combining 1.a and 2.a means that a legal minimum must be 7 days OFF during a month and at least 2 times a block of 2 days OFF in a month. The other days can be given as a stand alone day.

Questions posed to and answered by EASA on this topic: EASA FTL FAQs

In order to be in line with the EASA rules, the European Work Legislation and to stay within the legal framework, Flight Crews are entitled to:

• min. 7 days off per month;
• min. 2 times a block of 2 days off; and
• min. 104 days off (taking into account the Annual Leave) on a yearly basis (calendar year).

FAQ 10. Single day free of duty ORO FTL 105 (23)

Q: ‘A single day free of duty’ consists of one day and two local nights. Does the last day of several consecutive days free of duty need to contain at least one day and two nights?

A: Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 and Directive No 2000/79/EC do not contain a definition of multiple consecutive days free of duty.

Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 defines ‘single day free of duty’ as ‘a time free of all duties and standby consisting of one day and two local nights, which is notified in advance. A rest period may be included as part of the single day free of duty;’

If the last day of a series of days off does not contain two local nights, then that last day does not meet the criteria of a single day free of duty.

For example, if an operator assigns 3 consecutive local days free of duty ending at midnight, then only the first two consecutive ‘single’ days free of duty meet the definition.

This means that if you start a duty before 6:00lt after a weekly rest, this last day of your weekly rest does not meet the criteria to be taken into account for the 104 weekly rest days as required by European Work Law.

OM A – Chapter 7 or CLA

As explained above, any specific rules laid down in the OPS manual and/or the CLA of your airline has precedence over the legal European texts, so long as they are more restrictive than the European texts.

In practice – conclusion

The first day off of a series of days off or the standalone day off only counts to achieve the 104 days off in a calendar year, if it is not preceded by a duty that ends (sign-out) after midnight, which is the starting point of that day off.

The last day of a series of days off or the standalone day off only counts to achieve the 104 days off in a calendar year, if it is not followed by a duty that begins before 06:00 Local Time.

By Bart Smet, Co-VP Brussels Airlines

& Didier Moraine, ECA Director, FTL Specialist