Dublin, Ireland, February 29, 2012 — At the Opening Session of the 24th annual European Aviation Safety Seminar, the Flight Safety Foundation presented the FSF-Airbus Human Factors in Aviation Safety Award to Professor Phillipa Gander, Director of the Sleep/Wake Research Centre in New Zealand.
This award was created in 1999 to recognize “outstanding achievement in human factors contributions to aviation safety.” The award was instituted to encourage human factors research that would help reduce human errors, one of the most common elements in aviation accidents.
Dr. Gander is being recognized for her critical work in promoting the benefit of taking a more comprehensive, systematic approach to managing the many factors that result in fatigue-related performance changes in aviation operations.
“Dr. Gander has been leading the charge on addressing fatigue in aviation in a logically, science-based way,” commented FSF Chief Operating Officer Kevin Hiatt who presented the award in Dublin. “This issue is a hot topic in aviation safety circles and she was one of the first people to recognize the importance. The Foundation is honored to recognize her work.”
Dr. Gander began her work into fatigue research when she joined NASA-Ames in 1983. After spending 15 years overseas, she returned to New Zealand in order to establish the Sleep/Wake Research Centre with a grant from the Health Research Council of New Zealand.
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Flight Safety Foundation (flightsafetstg.wpenginepowered.com) is an independent, non-profit, international organization engaged in research, education, advocacy and publishing to improve aviation safety. The Foundation’s mission is to be the leading voice of safety for the global aerospace community.
Contact: Emily McGee, Director of Communications, 1-703-739-6700, ext. 126; mcgee@webdeva.flightsafety.org
