The Effect of Combat on the Work/Rest Schedules and Fatigue of Naval Aviators During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm

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Abstract
For 2 weeks during both Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, 23 naval aviators aboard the U.S.S. America completed daily activity logs and subjective fatigue measures while operating in the Red Sea combat theater. The aviators flew frequently at night without significant sleep problems or fatigue. A likely factor was the large number of assets in the combat theater, allowing workload to be shared. Raster plots of sleep periods suggest another contributing factor: The America's eastward travel from the East Coast through seven time zones may have benefited aircrew who were flying at night. If aircrew's circadian clocks had not fully adapted to local time on arrival in the Red Sea, then flights occurring at 0300 local time (2000 EST) were closer to being less-demanding evening flights by the body's internal clock. The results suggest that incorporat- ing information about the circadian phase of combatants into battle strategy may better prepare them to fight at suboptimal times.