Major Jeff Brown, a spokesman for the 174th Fighter Wing of the Air National Guard, said that in response to the new stress of around-the-clock Reaper missions, the unit has added a full-time chaplain and flight surgeon, as well as a civilian director of psychological health.
Reaper pilots and sensor operators from Syracuse’s 174th Fighter Wing of the Air National Guard participated in a recent Air Force study of job-related stress for crews of remotely piloted aircraft. 30% the operators of unmanned aircraft have high levels of job related stress, mostly linked to long and erratic work hours, the study reported.
The 174th has been flying remotely piloted MQ-9s daily in Afghanistan since 2009. They are controlled from pilot stations at Hancock Field. It has 25 two-person Reaper operating crews, flying combat missions over Afghanistan and new training missions Upstate.
The spiritual and health professionals can seek out crew members who have been supporting ground troops in Afghanistan or crew members can visit the base’s new health and wellness center for spiritual and counseling services.
Reaper shifts have been shortened “to reduce stress and keep the crew fresh,” Brown said. “The crews are educated on ways to mitigate stresses that come with working night shifts.”
The 174th is limiting the time operators fly combat sorties without a break to 2.5 hours at computer operating stations. Operators can fly more than one sortie a day, Brown said.
Wayne Chappelle, a co-author of the study, said Monday that shortening shifts to 50 hours or less and reducing the frequency of shift changes, from every 30 days to every 90 days, would reduce stress by offering more stability.
“One-third of our operators were working over 50 hours a week,” Chappelle said. “The more you worked over 50 hours a week, the higher at risk you were for burnout and clinical distress.”
The Air Force has been studying unmanned aircraft pilots for several years.
Active-duty Air Force members were found to be more than twice as likely as Air National Guard members to report high work-related emotional exhaustion and cynicism. Active-duty members are more likely to work longer hours, be assigned away from home, and face uncertain future assignments.
Source: Syracuse.com