Crew rest area - a compartment or specially designated place inside the aircraft , intended for rest of crew members during long-distance flights. Since the maximum permissible duration of the crew is limited by aviation regulations, and sometimes also by labor legislation, flights longer than this time are operated with interchangeable crews. Crew members can use the leisure areas after hours [1] .
Content
Location
Compartments for crew rest are usually present on long-haul liners and can be located above the passenger compartment (in this case, you need to climb the stairs [2] ) or next to it [3] . Sections for pilots located in the front of the aircraft are separated from rear sections for cabin crew [4] .
On some aircraft, it is possible to install such a compartment in the form of a module ( English crew rest module ). The module either takes the form of a standard cargo container and is placed in the cargo compartment of the aircraft located under the passenger compartment (entry into it is through a special hatch hidden from passengers), or is intended for installation inside the passenger compartment [5] . This scheme allows you to install compartments as necessary and remove them if the board is not used for long-haul flights.
Rest compartments may also be present on transport and military transport aircraft .
Description
Compartments can be equipped with berths, sometimes with additional seats [6] . Beds can be bunks [7] or capsule type sections [8] , can be separated by partitions or curtains. The beds have belts in case of getting into turbulence , however it is forbidden to be on them during taxiing, take-off and landing [6] . Compartments are also equipped with special lockable compartments for travel bags and other items. Seats can be equipped with on - board entertainment system (IFE) screens [6] . Compartments for pilots can have a separate toilet [6] .
It is forbidden to stay in rest rooms during taxiing, take-off and landing [9] . Exceptions can be made for compartments equipped with seats with belts [10] . To provide relaxation, compartments can have improved sound insulation compared to the passenger compartment.
Passenger access to the rest compartments is limited by regulation. To prevent unauthorized access, the entrances to the compartments can be protected by conventional or combination locks [2] .
The availability and level of equipment of recreation areas varies not only on different types of aircraft, but also on aircraft of the same model with different airlines . Aircraft are equipped with compartments at the request of the customer. In some countries, the presence of such compartments is required by law, for example, in the USA , the FAA requirements contain provisions according to which rest compartments must be present on long flights where several crew shifts are used [11] . Since the installation of these sections increases the cost of the aircraft, companies can save on them, for example, without equipping the aircraft with compartments for cabin crew. So, on long-range Aeroflot airplanes only the flight crew has a separate rest compartment, flight attendants can rest only in the back rows of the passenger rooms if there are no passengers there.
Types of Recreation Areas
The FAA defines 3 classes of rest areas, which should be provided depending on the number of crew members and the duration of the flight [12] :
- Class 1 - the compartment is physically separated from the cockpit and passenger compartment; equipped with bunks or sleeping planes; there is the possibility of sound and light insulation.
- Grade 2 - it is possible to take a lying position (folding seat in business class or several adjacent economy class chairs); the presence of curtains that can be drawn.
- Grade 3 - the presence of a reclining chair with support for the legs.
Aircraft equipped with rest compartments
- Airbus A330-300, Airbus A330-900neo
- Airbus a340
- Airbus A380
- Airbus A350
- An-124
- An-22
- Boeing 747-400
- Boeing 767
- Boeing 777-300ER
- Boeing 787-8
- Tu-114
Notes
- ↑ Kingston, Annie. "The Reality Of Being A Flight Attendant . The Huffington Post (January 21, 2016).
- ↑ 1 2 Inside Look: Crew Rest Areas on Different Airliners - AirlineReporter Neopr Airline Reporter (October 13, 2014). Date of treatment July 26, 2016.
- ↑ Inside the part of the plane you can't see . news.com.au. Date of treatment July 26, 2016.
- ↑ Federal Register | Special Conditions: Airbus, Model A350-900 Series Airplane; Crew Rest Compartments . www.federalregister.gov .
- ↑ Crew rest module . AeroExpo. Date of appeal October 31, 2018.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Sims, Alexandra. Inside planes' secret bedrooms where cabin crew go to rest . Independent (June 2, 2016).
- ↑ Boeing 747-4D7 - Thai Airways International . Airliners.net (April 24, 2004).
- ↑ Boeing 777-212 / ER - Singapore Airlines . Airliners.net (November 2004).
- ↑ Federal Register | Special Conditions: Airbus, A350-900 Series Airplane; Crew Rest Compartments . www.federalregister.gov .
- ↑ Special Condition D-04 .
- ↑ Preventing Crew Fatigue from A to Zzz . aviationweek.com . Business & Commercial Aviation. Date of treatment July 26, 2016.
- ↑ Advisory Circular AC 117-1 . Federal Aviation Administration . Date of treatment July 26, 2016.