Fatigue Management

Front-line soldiering could be as much a battle against
fatigue as against the enemy. This was almost literally
true at Sanananda where, in order to combat the powerful
desire to sleep, some men on watch in perilously forward
positions pulled pins from grenades and held down the
levers, knowing that sleep, and the release of their grip,
would bring death.
Mark Johnston
At the Front Line: Experiences of
Australian Soldiers in World War II, 1996
There was a lot of activity on our left flank around
Maryang San, with many enemy probes. It seemed that
they were building up to another counter-attack on us.
‘Lofty', exhausted by frequent ‘stand-tos', rolled over in his
pit onto his Owen gun and discharged a burst, destroying
his leg.
Maurie Pears
Recollections of War
In M. Pears and F. Kirkland's
Korea Remembered, 1998
Fatigue induced by the sustained and continuous nature of training exercises
has been identified as a major contributing factor in many serious accidents
among ADF personnel. Two brief, illustrative case studies are presented.
Case Study One. A SNCO was driving home from work at 1600 hrs. He
had been on duty the evening before, after working all day as an
instructor, during which time he had slept about two hours. After
dismounting from duty, he had worked another full day without rest.
During the 15 minute trip on a country road, the driver fell asleep at the
wheel. His vehicle veered onto the opposite side of the road and crashed
into an oncoming vehicle. The soldier was killed instantly.
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