Condition That Disrupts Sleep Responsible For Two Recent Train Crashes, Investigators Find
The Obama administration had been drafting a rule to require train operators, as well as truck and bus drivers be screened and treated for obstructive sleep apnea, but the Trump administration recently squashed it.
NPR:
Federal Report Blames A Type Of Sleep Apnea For Train Crashes
The National Transportation Safety Board reported Tuesday that engineers falling asleep at the controls led to two recent New York City area commuter train crashes that killed one person and injured more than 200 others. The investigative agency has sharply criticized the Trump administration for scrapping a proposed regulation aimed at preventing such fatigue-related events. (Schaper, 2/6)
In other news —
CQ:
Congress Seeks Fix To Hypoxia Issue For Pilots
Congress’ patience is wearing thin as the Air Force and Navy struggle to finds answers to – or even the causes of – physiological episodes in pilots that have grounded multiple kinds of aircraft in recent weeks. ... The purpose of Tuesday’s hearing was to get an update on the search for a solution to hypoxia-related incidents that continue to dog pilots in multiple aircraft, including the Air Force’s T-6 training aircraft; F/A-18s, the Navy’s signature fighter jet; and the F-35, the stealth fighter replacing older Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps aircraft. The issue continues to cause problems for military aviators, with dozens of A-10 Warthogs grounded last year at Davis-Monathan Air Force Base in Arizona. (Clevenger, 2/6)
