Pilot Commentary - Cargo: Every Pilot’s Concern

By Capt. Rich Hughey (FedEx Express), Chairman, ALPA President’s Committee for Cargo

In August, ALPA hosted the Air Cargo Safety Symposium . A literal “who’s who” of safety professionals participated, and I was proud to see our union well represented, both in attendance and on discussion panels. We provided our perspective to those in government and industry on how to manage the risks associated with cargo operations while listening to their perspectives on the issues affecting us. It was beneficial for all, and I look forward to building on the conversations from this symposium.

This fact bears restating: Every pilot is a cargo pilot—which is one reason we continue to advocate one level of safety and security. On any given flight, we may not be 100 percent certain of what we’re transporting aboard our airplanes, but we should be 100 percent certain in knowing what we aren’t transporting. Undeclared dangerous goods are a hazard for all commercial operations.

I’m honored to be teamed up with F/O Preston Greene (FedEx Express), vice chairman of the ALPA President’s Committee for Cargo. Preston is ALPA’s all-cargo security expert who pushes for airports to expand security identification display area (SIDA) access to include cargo operations in order to control access to cargo ramps and aircraft as well as strengthen cargo screening. He’s been outspoken in ALPA’s call to require security screenings for animal handlers, who frequently fly aboard cargo aircraft with hypodermic needles, tools, and other equipment that could be used against flight crews. Preston has led the charge to require installation of reinforced cockpit doors on all-cargo aircraft to afford cargo pilots a reactionary gap segregating the flight deck against anyone on board who would do us harm.

The diverse cargo we carry requires us to rethink strategies regarding inflight fire suppression. For many years, we relied on oxygen deprivation and halon to suppress cargo hold fires, but items like lithium batteries are immune to such tactics. To mitigate the risk of lithium battery fires, we continue to advocate a layered mitigation strategy via fire-suppression systems, fire-resistant cargo containers, and packaging to safeguard against this growing threat.

The nature of all-cargo operations requires us to fly at all hours of the day and night in and out of the same airports and in the same airspace as pilots flying passengers, yet cargo operations don’t necessarily have the same level of services available. For example, requirements for aircraft rescue and firefighting don’t apply to all-cargo operations but should, with around-the-clock personnel who are trained to handle a large volume and wide variety of dangerous goods.

The current FAR Part 121 regulation that applies to cargo operations is outdated and inadequate for what we now know about work, rest, sleep, fatigue, and human performance. Cargo pilots flying at night, who need science-based rules the most, are excluded on the basis of a flawed cost-benefit methodology. ALPA lauds Transport Canada for its foresight by including the all-cargo operational environment in its newly proposed science-based work-rest rules, raising the safety floor for all airline pilots in Canada.

I was recently asked to co-chair the Cargo Working Group of the Joint Implementation Measurement and Data Analysis Team of industry and government stakeholders who will review and study accidents, incidents, and the operational environment of all-cargo operations. Clearly, the FAA and industry recognize the value of our perspective by not only having us at the table, but also leading the discussion on the future of the profession and industry we love.

Air cargo is a vital segment of the supply chain within commercial aviation. While we continue to enjoy the safest mode of transportation in the world, there are still ways to make it even safer and more secure in this time of robust economic growth. By continuing to openly share our concerns and present our point of view on the issues affecting all-cargo pilots and operations, our message remains consistent: there should be just one level of safety and security for both passenger and cargo operations in the United States and Canada.

This article was originally published in the October 2017 issue of Air Line Pilot.

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