Fatigue risk management system

This regulation allows Part 121 air carriers to exceed the flight and duty time limits in this subpart, but only if the FAA approves their Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS). An FRMS is a data-driven alternative to the prescriptive rest rules that uses scientific principles to manage pilot fatigue.

To gain approval, the carrier must implement a comprehensive system with six required components: a fatigue risk management policy, education and training for personnel, a way for crew members to report fatigue, ongoing monitoring of flightcrew fatigue levels, an incident reporting process, and regular performance evaluations of the system's effectiveness.

In practice, this means airlines can potentially operate with more scheduling flexibility than the standard rules allow, provided they demonstrate through their FRMS that they're maintaining equivalent or better safety by actively managing fatigue risks through data and science rather than fixed time limits alone.

*This is a plain-English summary for study only. The official 14 CFR text on this page is controlling — always read the current regulation and consult a CFI.*