When Air New Zealand started planning their Auckland to New York route there was one important aspect that they had to think about – how much sleep would their crew get on the job.
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Air New Zealand's inaugural flight NZ2 makes its descent above New York City. Photo: Supplied
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"Sleep is an absolutely fundamental biological process. It is as important to us as eating and drinking," says Professor Leigh Signal, who is on a campaign for the vital importance of sleep to be recognised. She’s a professor in fatigue management and sleep health at Massy University, Wellington, with a focus on applying sleep science to workplace settings.
Having trained as a commercial pilot before moving into academia, Leigh is particularly suited to helping the aviation industry address the challenges many of its staff are faced with. Long work hours, changing time zones, shifting daylight hours that impact our biological clocks, and critical safety tasks that require people to be functioning well and working as a team.
Listen to the episode to learn how Leigh worked with Air New Zealand staff and management to ensure that the crew would get enough rest on this new long-haul flight.
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Listen to the full Our Changing World episode to learn more about basic sleep science research and what happens to our brains and bodies when we don’t get enough.