Merlin and Quikjet Partner to Conduct In-Flight Pilot Fatigue Study

February 18, 2025 at 09:02 AM EST

The first-of-its-kind study will observe a large pool of Quikjet’s commercial cargo pilots to assess and correlate pilot fatigue levels with in-flight performance

Merlin, the leading developer of safe, autonomous flight technology for fixed-wing aircraft, today announced a study in partnership with leading cargo airline, Quikjet, to assess pilot fatigue levels while in-flight. The intent of the study is to assess how wellness factors impact pilot performance, informing both new standards in safety and operational efficiency across airlines and the aviation industry as well as the ongoing design and development of the Merlin Pilot.

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Merlin and Quikjet partner to conduct pilot fatigue study. The data will be captured using WHOOP wearable devices. (Photo: Business Wire)

The study consists of gathering physiological data from a pool of Quikjet’s commercial pilots in-flight to track health factors such as stress levels, sleep quality, body temperature, heart rate, and more. The data will be captured using WHOOP wearable devices, which are renowned for their accuracy and ability to track key vitals in real-time, combined with a modified Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT), which evaluates a human’s ability to sustain attention. Together, the two outputs will provide a data-rich fatigue assessment as well as create predictive models that can forecast pilot fatigue based on established flying schedules.

“Merlin is committed to enhancing aviation safety, with a core focus of our work being to understand all facets of the pilot experience during flight operations, from crew workload to personal health impacts,” said Matt George, CEO and founder, Merlin. “The uniqueness of this study is that we are analyzing pilot fatigue both in and outside of flight operations, versus other studies done in simulated environments. This data provides us with a deeper, more accurate representation of pilot wellness in real-world conditions, which is pivotal to enhancing aviation safety. The study also supports our ongoing focus on human factors-driven innovation, where we’re continuously looking at how advanced automation can be a collaborative technology for pilots.”

About Merlin

Merlin is a venture backed aerospace startup building a non-human pilot to enable both reduced crew and uncrewed flight. Backed by some of the world’s leading investors, Merlin is scaling alongside our customers to begin leveraging autonomy today to solve some of aviation’s biggest challenges. To learn more, visit www.merlinlabs.com or follow us on X @merlinaero.