Are a “can do” Attitude and a can of Red Bull Enough? Workload and Fatigue in High-stakes, High-demand Carrier Sortie Operations

AbstractThe purpose of this investigation was to examine the role of fatigue and crew endurance in human performance of Carrier Sortie requirements; this mission capability involves high-stakes, high-demand, high-tempo operations in a challenging maritime environment. The researchers engaged with a panel of Nimitz crewmembers for a discussion of workload, notional schedules, and endurance risk factors. Workload was examined with models that consider the human capacity for sustaining. The investigation found that more attention is paid to physical fatigue, compared to cognitive or mental fatigue. Crewmembers emphasized that crew has a “can do” attitude to combat fatigue; the crew stated that “pride and adrenaline overpower fatigue…plus coffee and Red Bull.” They indicated that this results in good initiative, but at times bad judgment while trying to accomplish the work. The current research posits that fatigue is likely to reduce the ability of crewmembers to tolerate sustained performance and associated increased physiological and cognitive costs. However, the authors also recognize the limits of fatigue science with regard to predicting human capacity in intense operational and combat conditions. There is much anecdotal information to suggest that sailors are managing fatigue despite the predictions of various fatigue models. As a result, we cannot yet predict with certainty when the accumulated workload and fatigue of the individual sailor will be untenable, or identify critical thresholds of degraded cognitive capacity and decision making. Rather than rely solely on fatigue prediction software, it is recommended that potential mitigations are considered that might provide the crew more tools to manage endurance as a fatigue abatement strategy. The development of a crew endurance program to mitigate the risks posed by fatigue and reduced alertness during carrier sortie operations would identify risks relating to fatigue and alertness, and generate solutions to mitigate these risks by controlling exposure to endurance risk factors during normal operations so that the crew will be better prepared to respond to any operational demand